


A Night with the Fright Knight

by DameoftheDark



Series: Dani Phantom [8]
Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: AU where danny sam and tucker are the opposite gender, F/M, also im not very good at writing scary stuff so this is mostly gonna be action-y, but kinda violent toward the middle and into the end, like not really anything too sexual but i dont know, very mild sexual content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-09
Updated: 2018-09-22
Packaged: 2019-07-10 01:04:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 36,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15938558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DameoftheDark/pseuds/DameoftheDark
Summary: Feeling the good ol' Halloween spirit, Dani plans the perfect movie night for her friends, but before she can relax in front of the TV, she has to get her homework out the way first. When one rather taxing math problem gets on her nerves, she decides to take a trip into the Ghost Zone to blow off some steam. However, she ends up running into a beastly ghost that confuses her with a common thief, and chases her into a secluded cave. There, she finds a strange sword and uses it to fend off the monstrous apparition. Intrigued by the blade, she takes it home, not realizing the danger she's brought back with her. In addition, Dani finally works up the courage to ask Vlad over for the movie night, inadvertently putting him at risk as well. Can Dani defeat one of the Ghost Zone's most feared inhabitants before she and her dearest companions are reduced to terror-stricken vegetables?





	1. Chapter 1

“Finally, it’s over!” Tucker enthused with a great sigh, stretching her arms above her head as she leaned back.

For indeed, midterms ended with this last exam---Biology. The test was tedious, strenuous, and ball-bustingly difficult. Many of the students had studied their assess off the night before, and the **smarter** students had studied since at least a week before the test. The goth was one of these students, as was the computer geek.

Dani, however, was not.

She had sacrificed study time in order to property hone her powers. She practiced for hours on end in the lab, summoning energy blasts, turning invisible and intangible like a flickering light bulb, and tried to duplicate her form, though this didn’t go so well.

Impatience was one of her greatest weaknesses, apparently.

Vlad told her she wasn’t ready yet, but she wanted to try her luck anyway; the end result was a two-headed ghost girl.

Although, the young heroine had to admit, it was pretty cool having two heads. She laughed at the time, imagining the looks on her friends’ faces if they saw, as well as thinking about all the things she could do with more than one head; she could think about two different things at once, which would really come in handy with homework, and she could eat a burrito and a pizza at the same time---never again would she have to pick between the two!

But when she heard footsteps coming down the stairs, she was confronted with a flabbergasted Jazz, wearing a truly shocked expression.

Naturally, the 18-year old inquired about the situation, to which the half ghost responded in echo, only deepening the redhead’s discomfort.

All in all, it was pretty hilarious.  

The students were rising from their seats, eager to start the Halloween weekend of parties, junk food, and general foolery. A good number of them seemed relieved that the test was over, and so was Dani, but she couldn’t help but feel anxiety bubble in the bottom of her stomach; because she hadn’t studied much, there was a great possibility that her grade was going to suffer.

_I seriously don’t want to have to retake this class. I hate Biology!_

She slammed her head on the desk, emitting a dull thud as she did this. This warranted Tucker’s attention, so she turned to her friend and offered a sympathetic smile.

“Hey, you did your best, that has to count for something, right?”

“Yeah, if my best lands me in remedial science,” the young girl lamented.

Sam leaned on his elbow, looking unmoved. “I warned you, you know.”

“I know!” she replied in annoyance. “I should’ve studied more, I get it, but I wanted to make sure I had my powers down pat!”

“If you ask me girl, you’ve already got them down pat. I haven’t seen you fade away randomly or sink through the floor for about two months now,” Tucker stated as she tapped her chin.

The teenaged half ghost pondered this. True, she hadn’t had a powers-related incident in quite some time, and her combat skills were greatly improving. Perhaps she was a latened genius?

_Could I be one of those people who’s hidden potential is finally coming through? Maybe I’m not so stupid after all?_

The techno geek hopped off her stool and collected her bag, throwing it over her shoulder as Sam followed suit. He gathered his things before stepping off his seat and then walked around the front of their shared lab table. Dani did this as well, following her friends to the door and out of the classroom.

The corridors were adorned with paper bats, pumpkins, skeletons, witches, and---of course--- **ghosts**. Orange n’ black streamers draped across the ceiling and wrapped around bulletin boards, with purple n’ black ones outlining each classroom door. To get in one the fun, some students decked out their lockers with Halloween-themed stickers and artwork. One kid’s locker had a realism drawing of Freddie Kruger, and another had anime-style drawings of the Peanuts characters in their Halloween costumes.

The young half ghost also decided to participate in this, and taped a picture of a haunted house to her locker, one she commissioned Sam to draw; he was artist of the group. The image consisted of a rickety wooden house that slanted to the left, with shadows bathing the structure in darkness. These shadows were from the clouds, which hung in the eerie night sky like looming, yet lifeless fixtures. Naturally, they were colored a dark grey, meshing well the cold surroundings. The home itself was gothic, obviously inspirited by 19th century English Mansions, with tall but narrow windows and gargoyles posted on every corner of the roof.

Dani was fond of this drawing, and not just because one of her best friends had created it. Rather, it was because she could feel the emotions the piece invoked---the emptiness, the sense of cold dread, the fear of the unknown; what was in that house? Was it dangerous? Was is scary?

Everything one should feel when faced with a secluded, remote, and dark location.

And she loved it!

Approaching her locker, the young heroine smiled at the sight of the picture.

“You really outdid yourself, Sam,” she complimented.

“Eh, it’s not my best work,” he commented, shrugging.

“Shut up, its amazing,” Tucker chimed in, casting a knowing look at the rebel teen, who merely looked away.

Dani inputted her combination and pulled open her locker, reaching in and grabbing the necessary textbooks for the weekend. Just because it was Halloween didn’t mean she could skip out on homework.

Tucker leaned up against the adjacent lockers. “Man, it’s so lame that we have work do to over the weekend. It’s a holiday, come on!”

“Not an official one, Tuck,” Sam reminded, shoving his hands into his black hoodie pockets. That morning, the goth had spilled coffee all over the front of his trench coat, so he had to make use of another jacket. He picked the warmest hoodie he owned, for this one was fluffy on the inside and plush on the outside. It also had a print of a withering white rose on the back, so it wasn’t too bad a substitute.

Under this hoodie, Sam wore a plain black V-neck, grey acid-stained jeans, his trademark combat boots, and a silver chain around his neck that drooped down to his chest. He hadn’t been feeling too flashy when choosing his clothes.

Tucker, on the other hand, accessorized her outfit with Halloween jewelry from Claire’s; she sported two bracelets on each wrist, made up of white, black, and orange skull-shaped beads, with all four having a dangling ghost charm with goofy eyes. She also wore black ghost-shaped stud earrings and a necklace that matched her bracelets. On top of all this, she was dressed in a purple t-shirt with an orange cat printed on the front, black jeans, her usual brown cargo boots, and her red beanie had been traded for a black one, which matched her plain black hoodie.

The ghost girl hadn’t gone to much trouble, but she too enjoyed dressing in Halloween colors; she wore a plain orange t-shirt, blue denims, a pair of black converse, and grey cat earrings, the kind made of fabric and not plastic or metal, coupled with her favorite bubblegum hoodie.  

Dani shoved the last text book into her backpack, and was about to slug it over her shoulder when she saw phantom writing appear in her locker’s mirror. The lettering was very reminiscent of when someone wrote on a fogged-up window or shower door. Upon closer inspection, the young heroine read the message as: // _Have a super Halloween, Dollie!_ //

She giggled. “You too, Sidney.”

Sam and Tucker gazed at their friend curiously, then realization crossed their features.

“That Poindexter?” the goth asked.

“Duh, of course it is,” the computer geek remarked.

“How’s he been, anyway? Been a while since we’ve talked to him.”

“I’ve been checking on him every now and again,” Dani explained, looking at her friends. “He’s just happy I’m not being bullied so much anymore. Heck, sometimes he comes to see me during gym or study hall.”

“I was wondering who you were talking to!” Tucker said in revelation.

Then Sam leaned over and peered into Dani’s locker, eyeing the lettering.

“Why does he call you ‘Dollie’?”

“It’s just his nickname for me. It’s kinda cute, I think,” the ghost girl responded, smiling as she shrugged her bag on her shoulder.

“You **do** know it’s a term of endearment, right?” the rebel inquired in suspicion. “Guys would call their girls that back in the ‘50s.”

“I know,” Dani said slightly annoyed, raising an eyebrow. “I looked it up. But it doesn’t bother me. Sidney and I are just friends.”

“Oooo, he’s got a crush on you!” the techno geek teased, smiling brightly.

“No he doesn’t!” the heroine refuted, whipping her head in Tucker’s direction.

“He so does! Ooo I see a love triangle forming!” she enthused, interlacing her fingers before looking at Sam. “Well, love square.”

The goth furrowed his brow. “Can we just go home now?”

“I second that,” the young half ghost concurred before closing her locker. Since the week before, neither Dani nor Sam addressed the latter’s feelings for her, and they certainly didn’t talk about the girl’s feelings for Vlad. It was still awkward to bring up, and the two figured that if they wanted things to remain as they were before, then they shouldn’t go there, at least for now.

However, in the time since then, Dani **had** been thinking about what happened between her and the older man. She was still very much in the dark about what it all meant, and in the last few days, her doubts were only growing stronger. At one point, she was so sure he felt the same way for her, but in their training sessions, he acted exactly like he used to. He was calm, collected, patient, and above all, courteous. He didn’t over step his boundaries, and he **certainly** hadn’t tried to kiss her again. It was almost like the entire thing with Desiree hadn’t happened; it was like they had never shared a kinda-maybe-sorta kiss.

The young girl was admittedly disappointed, and she was a bit saddened that the billionaire hadn’t at least **mentioned** what occurred that day. Instead, he carried on as if nothing remotely intimate had taken place.

That wasn’t to say that he neglected her---actually, he was just as considerate and kind as ever, which confused the teenager all the more. She wasn’t sure what to expect from him anymore, and she didn’t know if the things she wanted were the things he wanted.

Did he not love her back after all? Was she not his One and Only?

This thought terrified the younger half ghost. She couldn’t imagine a world without Vlad, and she **definitely** didn’t want to live in a world where she saw him with someone else. To be forced to watch such a thing, it would break her.

Shaking that nightmare from her head, the ghost girl followed Tucker and Sam as they trotted outside the school, anticipation engulfing their minds. Once they were a block or two away, Tucker exclaimed in excitement: “I just can’t for tomorrow! Hey, you guys wanna do something today too? Like, go to the mall or the Halloween super store?”

“Nah, I think we should get our homework done tonight so we can stay up late and watch those movies Dani promised us,” Sam disagreed.

“Ah what? No way man, its impossible to get it all done tonight!” she contested.

“Not if you work at it,” he pointed out.

“Maybe if you don’t want to sleep,” the techno geek remarked.

“I’m with Sam on this one,” the half ghost heroine consented. “We should get it all done and out of the way so we can watch all the movies I picked out.”

“Ugh, since when were you the studious type?” Tucker questioned, clearly dissatisfied no one was taking her side.

Dani offered an “I dunno” shrug and plunged her chilly hands into the pockets of her hoodie.

“In any case, let’s get as much done as possible, so we don’t have to stress too much,” the rebel teen recommended. 

“Makes sense to me,” Dani approved.

Tucker let out an aggravated groan, but offered no other dissidence.

“By the way, when do you want us over, Dani?” Sam inquired.

“Uh…how about 4, 4:30?”

“4 sounds good.”

“Then 4 it is!”

The computer geek sighed, resigning herself to doing a mountain of homework, and then grinned.

“Yeah, that’ll work for me.”

“Perfect!” the ghost girl enthused. “I’ll have everything ready by the time you get there.”

“Awesome! Can’t wait!” Tucker said in delight.

Then, with a few waves of departure, the trio made their way to their own houses, greatly looking forward to what the next evening had in store for them.

 

***********

 

The young heroine sat hunched over her desk, eyes lingering one a single algebra problem. By this point, she was so lost, a map wouldn’t be able to help her. She’d been working on her math homework for the last three hours, and the vast amount of numbers and formulas were swimming around in her brain, clogging her thinking. She still had five other subjects to cover, and she quickly realized she wouldn’t be able to finish it all in one day.

_I guess I can leave some of my homework for tomorrow. I probably don’t have a choice. I’ll just have to get it all done by 4._

Plus, she had to have some time beforehand to set everything up; she’d already bought the goodies, but she still needed to purchase the movies and prepare the living room for a night-long horror fest. This meant, of course, closing all the curtains, turning off all the lights, and gathering all the coziest blankets in the house. All in all, the entire process would probably take an hour.

_O.K., I’ll need to be done by 3._

Which wouldn’t be a problem if she went to bed at a decent hour, which wouldn’t happen if she kept struggling over this one math problem.

“Argh, I need to blow off some steam,” she concluded, rising from her chair. White rings appeared at her midsection, changing her into Dani Phantom. Turning intangible, she flew down to the lab and landed in front of the ghost portal, returning to tangible form.

Her neon green eyes spotted the control panel, which was completely restored. The eccentric bachelor had fixed it in under five minutes, and it worked even better than it used to. He then went on to insult Jack for his “obvious incompetence”, and Dani swiftly scolded him. She reminded him that he’d made a promise to get along with her father better, and he reluctantly agreed.

She’d wanted to ask him whether or not he was hiding from Jack, like Sam implied he was, but she couldn’t work up the courage. Depending on his reply, she would either be very happy and concerned, or crestfallen and concerned.

Even thinking about it now made her anxious, so she ignored those thoughts. Instead, she opened the portal and ventured inside the ethereal realm.

Dani had gone into the Ghost Zone before, but usually it was to map out the terrain. This excursion, however, was purely to take a breather, and maybe beat up the Box Ghost if she ran into him.

She hoped she’d run into him.

It was strangely relaxing, drifting aimlessly through the Ghost Zone. Though many would be freaked out beyond all measure, Dani was comfortable enough, perhaps due to all the trips she made in and out of it.

She could see Skulker’s island in the distance, and thus turned promptly away. No need to have that tin-plated jerk on her tail.

Flying at a casual speed, the young half ghost glanced around at the various substances that floated, drifted, and bobbed about, all of them being interesting shades of green, blue, or purple. The ectoplasmic masses seemed to be just as adrift and purposeless as she---wandering the otherworldly plain with no destination or goal in mind. They were quite reminiscent of the modern-day teenager, actually. These blobs danced about without a care, without meaning. But unlike teenagers, they couldn’t find meaning or forge their own. They were instead doomed to drift forever, deeper and deeper into the Ghost Zone.

Although, they probably didn’t mind. After all, raw ectoplasm wasn’t sentient.

Dani looked around for signs of other ghosts, or random plots of land, but didn’t see any. It appeared that this section of the Ghost Zone was barren, empty, **boring**.

“I feel like I’m back at my math homework---just without the irritation.”

Opting to find something engaging, the white-haired teen trekked on, increasing her speed.

For the next 20 minutes, nothing remotely interesting caught her attention. As a result, she decided to think about tomorrow night, and she couldn’t stop a grin from spreading across her face. All that candy, junk food, quality horror movies, and good friends to share it all with---she truly couldn’t ask for anything better.

Then a question assaulted her mind: Should she invite Vlad after all?

After what happened with Desiree, as well as the subsequent training sessions, she figured it best if she didn’t ask. Now, she entertained the idea wholeheartedly; she started to wonder how he handled scary movies---though she doubted what Tucker had once assumed. The ghost girl also imagined sitting next to him, and when a jumpscare came, she saw herself clutching his arm and hiding in his chest. The daydream gave her butterflies.

She wouldn’t be able to see him until next Tuesday, but now she wanted to be with him. Badly.

Dani greatly clung to her fantasy, hoping to use it in order to build up the courage to call him. It was just a few words---“Would you like to come over tomorrow and watch scary movies”---it wasn’t that hard.

Except for a teenager, it was that hard.

Groaning, the young heroine flipped over in her back and slapped her gloved-hands over her eyes.

“I want to see him…I **really** want to see him…”

Suddenly, her wish to see him turned from just a simple desire to a desperate longing. Dani wanted to see him, to be with him so much that her heart ached. Her brain flooded with the older business mogul, refusing to let anyone else, or anything else in. Her heart began to beat a little faster, steadily increasing in rate, and her cheeks started to feel a bit flush.

“Oh no…Oh no no no no no----This is---!”

Any minute now, her insides would start to burn, her skin would radiate intense heat and her mind would spiral into haze---The Need was back!!

She shut her eyes, dreading the inevitable rush of agonizing pain.

But, after a few minutes, nothing came.

The flustered state was still present, to be sure, but she wasn’t in any pain.

“Huh..?”

She sat up, stopping in her tracks, and looked perplexed. Mentally, she was feeling the same way as she did whenever The Need asserted itself. She was longing to see her charming mentor, aching to be next to him, but the “ache” wasn’t literal…she wasn’t **literally** burning to see her One and Only.

_What’s going on? How come I’m not experiencing The Need physically? I mean, as a half ghost, I should be---_

“Wait…”

The young heroine looked at herself.

“Maybe…maybe I’m not in pain ‘cause I’m in my ghost form?”

When Kitty told her about ghosts and their One and Onlys, she’d surmised that Dani was inflicted by a literal reaction to the powerful desire because she had been in her human form whenever The Need struck, and since humans were corporeal, she felt physically what ghosts feel emotionally. However, now that she was in her ghost form…

“Ha! Holy crap, I’m not in pain! WHOO!” she cheered.

Regardless, her mind might just drive her mad; though she was ecstatic she wasn’t in any pain, her mind was obsessing over seeing the tycoon, being at his side. It was enough to make her ruffle her hair in frustration.

“Argh! Enough already!” she breathed with impatience evident in her tone.

She was well aware that she wasn’t near him at the moment, and though her mind, heart, and body may have found that hard to except, she would endeavor to ignore the vexing longing in her very core. Shaking her head like a wet dog, she aimed her attention forward, and continued her spontaneous journey.

Not but a minute passed when her ghost sense went off, alerting Dani to the presence of another ghost. She stopped, looking around her, and out of the corner of her eye, she witnessed a frightening beast manifest just a few feet in the distance. Turning fully to the creature, the ghost girl noted its red and grey appearance, as well as it’s four arms, large black eyes, sharp claws, and massive mouth of razor-edged, elongated teeth.

It roared at her, establishing some kind of dominance or warning.

One that the young heroine took to heart.

“Hey---uh---don’t mind me! I’m just strolling---err---flying through here, not tryin’ to hurt anybody or anything---totally just minding my own business!” she spat out nervously.

The monster ghost roared again, and grabbed the teenager in one fell swoop.

“AH!”

It squeezed her, making Dani gasp. She felt like her lungs were being compressed under heavy machinery.

_Gotta get outta this!_

She tried going intangible, but the beast’s strength kept her from using this ability all the way. Much like Desiree’s or Vlad’s grip, it canceled out her intangibility.

_Crap!!_

Then she remembered what the billionaire had taught her several weeks prior: he told her that if she solely relied on intangibility, she would whined up in trouble in the near future. This was why hand-to-hand combat was so important, why defensive moves were vital. But what defensive moves could she make while being held in the mother of all fists?

Perhaps she could try shooting ecto-energy from her eyes, like the older man had in the past?

She didn’t know how to do that.

Maybe she could turn invisible and confuse the creature?

He would still be able to feel her in his hand.

Should she cry out for help?

No one was around.

Besides, if she cried for help every time she was in trouble, she would never improve as a superhero.

_Moreover, I’m not some scared little girl. I can take care of myself._

Determined, she furrowed her brow and glared at the monster ghost, challenging it with her eyes.

“Isat the best you got?” she goaded. “I’ve fought ectoplasmic **blobs** more frightening than you!”

It seemed the taunting worked, for the beast tossed Dani several yards away, temper ignited. When she gathered herself---after summer salting a good five times---she summoned energy in her palms and prepared for an assault. The monstrous ghost roared and charged at the young half ghost, who took advantage of its primal state and fired two beams of light at its chest, effectively pushing it back. The creature struggled, grunted, groaned, and snarled, attempting to fight Dani’s steady attack. Then the girl pulled her arms back and then pushed forward, emitting larger rays of green.

This caused her opponent to fly backward, slamming into something much smaller than he was. The object began floating away, and it looked like a glass display with something resting inside.

The creature looked behind it, seeing the object drift away gracefully, until coming to a complete stop. It then turned to the teenaged heroine, fury etched into its features.

“Uh---Oh! So you think I’m here for **that**? No no no no, I’m just passing through. I don’t even know what that is.”

Her words didn’t seem to have much of an effect, because within the blink of an eye, the beast was on her like ink on an Ecto-pus. With a squeak, the half ghost zipped in the opposite direction, seeing a cave to her right. She sailed inside, dodging the stalagmites swiftly and carefully. Humoring the idea that the mouth of the cave was too narrow for the beast to follow, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Only to hear a cacophony of infuriated-monster-ghost at her back.

Glancing over her shoulder, the young heroine saw the creature pursuing her at an alarming speed; he would catch up to her in no time flat.

Yelping, Dani weaved passed another group of spires and ducked into a small opening, but the ghost merely crashed through the floor and continued the chase.

“Hey, if you’re supposed to be looking after that thing back there, then shouldn’t you be, I dunno, **back there**?!”

The beast replied with yet another roar, one that shook the walls of the cave, causing rocks and stalactites to dislodge from the ceiling. One rather prominent stalactite dropped right next to Dani, knocking her to the left. She hit the uneven wall, tearing the back of her jumpsuit.

But the beast didn’t yield; it collided with her petite form, sending the both of them through the wall and into a small cavern. The space was dark, but light enough to still see where one was going. Rock formations lined every inch of the room, making it seem even smaller---it was a good thing Dani wasn’t claustrophobic.

At the center of the cavern sat another formation; a 4-foot tall pedestal with jagged rocks jetting out from the sides and strange carvings stood in the middle of the mysterious space. Though she couldn’t be sure (sense she was currently lying in her back with a ghostly monster pinning her down), it looked like one of the carvings was of a skull, or a helmet that looked like a skull.

Also, upon the pedestal was a large, plump, orange pumpkin skewered by a green sword.

At this point, instinct took over, and the teenager had only one thought on her mind: _get that sword!_

She kicked with her knees, jabbing the creature in the midsection. It sat up to hold its bruised spot, and the heroine made a b-line for the glowing weapon. Her heart was pounding, adrenaline pumping, nothing was going to get in her way. She might as well have had tunnel vision, since her mind was entirely focused on grabbing the one thing that could get her out of this mess.

She reached out for the hilt, hearing the beast roar once more. Not waiting to see how close it was (although, she probably didn’t need to anyway, since the space was so small), she seized the melee weapon and yanked it out of the pumpkin, not caring why it was there in the first place.

The young half ghost turned around, seeing the creature barreling toward her. It’s mouth was open, exposing those shuddering-inducing incisors. But, just as it was about to take a bite out of the young heroine, Dani swung the blade at the ghost’s aperture, slicing the two front teeth clean in half.

The creature let out a sound that was akin to a wounded dragon---or perhaps the Loch Ness monster.

It slapped its hands over its mouth, eyes squeezing shut. The beast groaned and snarled, but more at the pain than at the one who inflicted it.

The young ghost girl stood there, sword in hand, utterly stunned. She gazed at the weapon, seeing the glowing green aura dance in a waltz-like fashion---slow but refined. She hadn’t noticed it before, but the energy the sword was giving off was immense. The power that radiated from it sent shivers down her spine, and she could feel its strength course through her as she held it.

Then the beast grunted and opened its fiery eyes, only for those black orbs to land on the sword, and in turn fill with caution. The ghost floated backward a couple paces, and then teleported out of the room, leaving the ghost girl with the strange, and overwhelming weapon.

“Whoa…” she muttered in awe.

She got a good look at the blade, neon green eyes scanning every inch. It looked like the standard one-handed sword, but the hilt was covered in strange runes and symbols---some of them resembling Celtic Knots, but the teenager wasn’t sure that’s what they were. And at the end of the hilt was a tiny green pumpkin, sneering up at the wielder. It very much resembled a jack-o-lantern.

Dani ran her fingers over the blade, feeling the near-frozen surface, even through her gloves. Then something caught her attention; written on the side of the blade was the phrase: _Soul Shredder._

“Huh…interesting,” she noted, observing the sword like it was fascinating specimen. “I wonder why this was here? And, **what** is it?”

She turned back to the pumpkin on the pedestal, watching in curiosity. This had to be a booby trap of something---after all, you can’t just pull a sword out of some random object, and **not** be cursed.

So she waited, but after five minutes of inactivity, she relaxed her posture.

“Ya know, I’m kinda disappointed,” she remarked, placing a fist to her hip and holding the sword on her shoulder. “But I gotta say, this is a sweet weapon.”

She glanced at the blade with appreciative eyes. If this instrument hadn’t been behind that wall, she would have been a goner for sure. Even though, yes, the randomness of the sword was a bit concerning, she was just grateful it was around at all. It was more powerful than anything she had ever used, or even produced before. Then she wondered: what was this sword, exactly? Where did it originally come from? Did it belong to someone? Who made it?

Should she show her friends?

“Hell yeah!”

Excitement flooding her mind, Dani soared out of the cavern and back through the cave, eyeing the melee weapon with anticipation.

“They’re gonna totally plotz when I show them this! I bet Sam’s gonna wanna swing it around; it kinda looks like something he’d like.”

Then suddenly, she thought something else: Would Vlad know anything about the sword? He was so knowledgeable about most things in the Ghost Zone, so maybe he knew of it.

Would he be impressed with her for finding it? Would he praise her for using it against that beast?

She blushed at the thought, not bothering to suppress a giggle.

“I can’t wait to show everyone!” she chirped.

Then she sailed back out of the cave, doing well to avoid the spot where she ran into that creature. However, as she passed the area, she saw the glass display was still there, just minus a guardian. Maybe he only appeared when someone got too close?

_Did I really get that close to it, though? I don’t remember seeing it…_

Shrugging, she flew away from the display case, gripping the sword in eagerness and sporting a big grin on her youthful pink face.

 

************

 

The pompous billionaire paced back and forth in his office, the boxes having been unpacked some time ago. His expression was contemplative, even troubled. He held a fist to his lips, supporting his arm on the other one, which was crossed over his chest. 

To say that the man was deeply concerned would’ve been an understatement.

It had been a week since the incident with Desiree, and it had been a day since his last training session with Dani. Though his senses had returned, Vlad found that his hold over his instincts and desires was far weaker than before; during yesterday’s session, it took every ounce of his willpower to keep his hands off the young heroine. He wanted noting more than to embrace and kiss her, to assert his dominance with his tongue.

However, he didn’t. The tycoon placed himself on thin ice, ice that would shatter if he acted so intimately again. He knew that if he even so much as teased her, he would be unable to keep himself together---he would be completely unable to hold himself back.

Now that he knew what it was like, now that he had a taste of would it **could** be like, the businessman longed for something personal, private, **satisfying** , with his little badger, and he didn’t know how much longer he could maintain the “patient gentleman” façade.

Of course, this illusion had already crumbled, thanks to Desiree.

_Or more accurately, Samuel Manson._

The younger half ghost did explain to Vlad that she thought no less of him, even after his primal display. She still held him in high esteem, and respected him as a mentor and comrade. However, the older bachelor couldn’t help the shame from creeping into his mind. He allowed this to happen, to permit another to get the better of him, and use him for their own purposes. For that, he was truly aggravated and ashamed.

Were that the extent of it, however; he was greatly ashamed that he subjected Dani to his darker side, his baser urges. She wasn’t ready for anything that intense, and yet he practically **forced** himself on her. At the time, the only thing he was concerned about was making sure no one could steal her away, but he’d promised himself he wouldn’t scare her, and that was **precisely** what he did. His actions would have been enough to frighten anybody away, as reprehensible as they were. None the less, the ghost girl remained strong in her conviction; she promised to stay and fight at his side, despite his behavior.

But he still couldn’t completely forgive himself. After all, he made her cry again.

Sadly, his mental torment didn’t end there.

There was a nagging, persistent memory laying at the back of Vlad’s mind, shoving itself to the forefront of his consciousness. During one of the conversations with his pupil, he’d alluded to his feelings for her, confirming his jealousy toward the goth teen. The older half ghost knew his little badger was no fool---surely she’d put two and two together?

_Although, it’s difficult to determine if she’d figured it out, or if she was just being her usual, adorable self._

Seeing as she tended to be flustered whenever they spent time together, the eccentric business mogul couldn’t say for certain. Being a teenager, Dani was prone to getting embarrassed over the most trivial of things, after all.

 Nevertheless, the silver-haired half ghost was profoundly worried---the memory that ailed him also included a certain statement from the young girl: “ _He told me, but I rejected him. I told him…I told him that I like someone else…_ ”

True, Vlad was worried that Dani might have learned of his true feelings for her, but that was only because of another underlying fear; what if the person she liked wasn’t him?

His stomach twisted at the thought, feeling bile rise in his throat.

“No, this can’t be,” he asserted, trying to ease his nerves, unsuccessfully. “I can’t lose her, not after experiencing a sliver of what we could be…”

He gripped his head in frustration and building panic. He couldn’t--- **wouldn’t** survive if this turned out to be like Jack and Maddie all over again. To be so deeply in love, so wretchedly intrenched in a burning passion, Vlad knew he would just fall apart of his affections were not returned. He was liable to go insane, possibly fall even further into the darkness. It was rather odd, actually, that he felt so. With Maddie, his feelings led him to commit nefarious deeds, yes, but he never believed the lack of her love would send him down an even darker path. Although, that may be attributed to the fact that he never even humored the prospection of a rejection.

But with Dani, his dear little badger, his bright and sweet girl, he believed it was possible, for he felt it in his bones. He knew that if her heart could not be his, he would most likely **make it** his.

Though this idea presented another problem, and thus inspired another internal struggle. A part of Vlad longed to show Danielle how much she meant to him---to prove to her his love and devotion by claiming her as his own. One the flip side, he didn’t want to force himself on her again, and he certainly didn’t want to frighten her off. He wanted to lock her up, but at the same time, give her the world.

He groaned irately, balling his masculine hands into fists. Then he eyed his desk out of the corner of his vision, proceeding to shove everything off the mahogany surface.

“ARGH! This is maddening!”

He slammed his heated palms unto the desk, staring intently at it without really seeing it.

“I have to have her, it’s just that simple, but how much longer can I control myself? And how can I hope to remain professional if Danielle’s in love with someone else? I can’t…I won’t…”

Vlad hung his head low, leaving all support to his neck. Suddenly he was feeling hopeless, dejected. His navy eyes reflected a great melancholy, the manic fire being extinguished. The billionaire found he was wishing he’d never heard what the ghost girl said, even if it meant being oblivious to her feelings (though he doubted he’d remain that way for long, being as astute as he was). Somehow, knowing that she was love in **at all** was more worrisome than if she hadn’t been to begin with.

He heaved a hefty sigh, and then felt something vibrate in his breast pocket. Raising an eyebrow, he reached into his blazer and pulled out his cell phone---a black flip phone---and flicked it open with his thumb. The small pixelated screen alerted him that he’d gotten a text message, and when he saw the contact’s name, his expression morphed into a delighted visage.

Opening the message, his orbs expressed tenderness and warmth.

// _Hi!_ //

He laughed. “So simple, yet so refreshing,” he stated with a smile.

// _Hello, little badger._ //

He clicked send, and after only a few seconds, Vlad received a reply.

// _Hows it going?_ //

The older man inwardly cringed at the bad grammar, but decided to let it slide.

// _Perfectly well, thank you. I’ve finally caught up with my work, and I can afford to relax this weekend._ //

// _Thats pretty cool. So, does that mean ur free?_ //

The businessman turned around and leaned on his desk, lightly gripping its edge. Her question spawned eagerness in his core, along with silent dread---a dread that wouldn’t be there, if not for his untested fear.

What was the reason for the question? Was it just curiosity, or was it something more? Did she want something of him, and if so, what was it? Perhaps extra training, more maybe…

He released a long, anxious breath from his noise.

// _Yes, I have no plans as of this moment._ //

// _So would u like 2 come over tomorrow night? My friends and I r doing a thing for Halloween. Its kinda dumb, but we have a lot of fun! But if u don’t want 2, its cool._ //  

Vlad’s heart skipped a beat when he read the first part of her message, but as he read on, he felt extremely silly. She was merely inviting him to spend Halloween night together with her, Tucker, and Samuel, nothing more.

Although, he had to admit, it was probably better that **this** was her intent.

He blinked in consideration. Of course the older half ghost wanted to see his little badger, and if others were around, it would be easier to keep himself in check. However, he didn’t fancy spending an evening (or however long this thing lasted for) with the rebel teen.

Then he remembered another person that resided in that house.

He shuddered.

The tycoon drummed his fingers on the desk, weighing his options. Either he attended this little get together and risk exposure to Jack’s idiocy, or he would decline Dani’s offer and spend tomorrow night alone.

When he thought about it, his answer was obvious.

// _I would be more than happy to come, Danielle._ //

Then, after sending his response, he added another: // _But I have to ask, will Jack be present?_ //

// _No, he and mom r going 2 a ghost hunting conference in chicago. They’ll be gone all weekend._ //

A relieved sigh flew from the older man’s mouth.

He knew he’d promised the young heroine he’d try to rekindle his friendship with the big dumb oaf, but in truth, he was hoping to put that off as long as possible.

// _Very well. What time should I arrive?_ //

// _My friends and I decided on 4. Does that work for u?_ //

// _Indeed._ //

// _Awesome! So I’ll see u then!_ //

// _You can count on it, little badger._ //

The business mogul flipped his cell phone shut, an elated smile in his face. He wasn’t sure what was in store for him, but just being with his dear one was enough to please his soul. It mattered not what they did; as long as he was by her side, the activity was of little importance.

“How fortuitous,” he commented, loosening his tie. “It seems I have something to look forward to.”

 

*********

 

The young heroine squealed, sitting on her bed with her legs curled in. Her joy was plastered on her face, in the form of an open-mouthed smile. She held her cell phone in a quivering hand, simultaneously pressing it into her bosom.

“He said yes! Wahoo!” she cheered.

Dani fell back on her bed, head hitting the plush pillows. At first, she was nervous about texting the older man, anxiety careening into her brain and replacing the blood in her veins. What if he said no? How would he interpret her invitation? Was it weird to invite him over to her house at night without either of her parents knowing?

Probably, but Vlad was also an adult, so what was the harm?

Especially if he didn’t feel the same way; if Vlad’s feelings were nothing more than platonic affections for a pupil, then the chances of him doing something questionable---or remotely intimate---were quite low.

Although, that didn’t seem to stop him during last week’s campaign against Desiree.

The ghost girl shook her head and clutched her phone, holding it tight in her small palm. What did any of those questions matter? He’d agreed to come over, so it wasn’t important how he saw the invitation…right?

If Sam was right, and the billionaire did indeed love her back, then would be see this as a good thing? Would he be expecting anything?

“What am I thinking?” Dani criticized herself, slapped the back her hand (which held her phone) to her forehead. “I shouldn’t be even be **humoring** the possibility that he feels the same way. It’s too dangerous.”

She closed her eyes and imagined the movie night; with Sam, Tucker, Vlad, and herself sitting around the TV and watching Halloween or The Birds---the exact film wasn’t crucial---having a good time and chillaxing. Once again, she pictured herself hiding in his broad, strong form when something scary appeared on screen, and for some reason, she imagined him chuckling. Then he gently stroked her head, repeating this ministration a few times before resting his arm over her shoulders.

Dani remembered his warmth, his scent, and applied them to this little fantasy. His body was solid, hard, comforting, and his natural aroma wafted into her nose and satiated her senses. In the daydream, she smiled against his chest, and mirrored this expression in real time.

Feeling her face heat up, she groaned, but maintained her smile.

The younger half ghost rolled around on her bed, feeling fidgety. Now she didn’t know what to do with herself.  

Then something caught her attention; as she flipped over on her side, she saw the sword she acquired in the Ghost Zone, which was leaning up against one of the doors to her closet. As she sat up, she recalled wanting to show it off to Vlad and her friends.

“Guess I’ll do that tomorrow. Kinda fits with the theme, anyway.”

For indeed, it resembled a weapon one may see in a Halloween movie, and she **had** pulled it out of a pumpkin.

After observing the blade for a few seconds, she hopped off her bed, remembering something else.

“Speaking of Halloween, I need to go buy those movies.”

Dani grabbed her hoodie, which she had draped over the footboard of her bed, and strolled out of the bedroom, a bit of pep in her jaunty step.


	2. Chapter 2

Late afternoon light poured into the lavish bedroom, bathing most of the space in a warm yellow. The Sun hung at the tree line, seemingly like it was cut in half. More of the soft lighting bled through the leaves and illuminated small patches of grass in the back yard, resembling mini-Jesus fingers.

The business mogul stood in his walk-in closet, observing his reflection in the body mirror. He was wearing his usual attire---black suit and red cravat---and scrutinized his appearance from every angle. He turned his head left to right, up and down, and diagonally, sizing himself up. Those navy orbs traced over his clothes, pausing at his upper half every so often. Then he clasped his hands behind his back and turned around, looking over his shoulder at the mirror.

Something about his outfit didn’t sit right with him.

“Hmm, this won’t do, I don’t think,” he alleged out loud.

Now, he loved suits as much as the next billionaire, but despite his pleasure in “dressing to impress”, he knew that in this instance it was entirely unnecessary. He was only going to a get together with Danielle and her friends, which most likely meant there was going to be minimal movement; they were probably going to watch horror movies, as it was a common practice for those who didn’t attend parties or other such events. With that in mind, Vlad realized that something more flexible would be better suited for this evening.

After analyzing his trademark black blazer, he then slid it off his shoulders and placed it on a shelf, nice and neatly. He placed his hands on his waist, scanning the hangers in front of him. If he was going for something a little more casual, then he needed to start over.

The older man unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it off, folding it and setting it down next to his blazer. After that, he removed his trousers and, of course, laid them with the rest of his previous outfit.

He walked to the near end of the closet to the rows and rows of designer jeans and button up shirts. Vlad was the kind of person who organized his wardrobe based on feel, rather than types of clothing; he kept all his formal wear in one section of the closet, causal in another, and so on.

He adopted a thinking pose, eyes roaming about the many articles of expensive garments. Once he narrowed down his choice of jeans to something a bit darker, he grabbed a pair of dark blue denims and set them aside on the center island, then stepping over to the shirts. The tycoon ran his hand over the sleeves of several satin, cotton, and silk button ups of varying colors before settling on one in particular---a deep crimson silk shirt with a tiny floral pattern and metallic buttons. Nodding, he pulled it off the hanger and slipped it on, buttoning it over his well-toned abs and chest. Then he collected his jeans and a black leather belt (with a V-shaped buckle, ‘cause, or course) and proceeded to put those on as well.

He completed his look with his usual black loafers---the ones that clacked as he walked.

When he was dressed, he slid his hands into the pockets of his denims, and looked himself over once more in the mirror. Repeating his earlier poses, he felt much more content with this outfit.

“Yes, this will serve quite well,” he affirmed, smirking at his devilishly handsome reflection. He smoothed his beard with his forefinger and thumb, contemplating how his little badger would react to seeing him.

After all, she’d only ever seen him in a suit---would she be surprised? Would she find him just as attractive as he did?

Yes, he was a narcissist.

Is it really that unexpected?

As he rolled up his sleeves, Vlad imagined what his adorable pupil might be wearing for the night. He surmised that she would be dressed in her usual style---t-shirt and jeans---which he didn’t mind, but the idea of his dear girl being clad in a cute dress (like the one she wore to the reunion) or even a sensual costume pleased him immensely. The chances of this, however, were slim, since Danielle wasn’t one for more feminine attire.

But the image was oh so enticing.

Maybe he should hint that he’d like to see her in such outfits?

Then his dark grin faded, as he recalled something troubling; if his little badger didn’t desire him the way he did her, then a suggestion such as that would creep her out, possibly disgust her.

The silver-haired half ghost shook his head, knocking that thought from his subconscious. Tonight was to be a night of delight and enjoyment, one void of apprehension and unease. He was going to be spending time with his sweet young pupil, and he wanted nothing to get in the way of this.

He hummed in affirmation and strode out of the closet, seizing his cellphone on a nearby dresser in the bedroom. Once the device was snug in his back pocket, twin black rings manifested at his torso, changing him into Vlad Plasmius. With one final glance about the room (in an effort to make sure he wasn’t forgetting anything), the older man brought his cape around his person, teleporting away in a spiral of fuchsia light.

 

**********

 

At precisely 4 on the dot, the eccentric bachelor arrived at the doorstep of Fenton Works, feeling his heart rate increase slightly. He looked around, making sure no one was near, and transformed back into human form.

He supposed that trick or treaters wouldn’t start littering the neighborhood until later in the evening, conceivably around 6 or 7 o’clock.

Clearing his throat, the older man rang the doorbell, electing to enter the house in the **usual** manner---he didn’t want to startle Dani with a sudden appearance through a wall.

As he waited, the businessman slipped his hands into his pants pockets again, gazing up at the obnoxious neon sign advertised at the front of the residence, just above his head. Surely this had to be some kind of code violation?

It assaulted his eyes, reminding him of Jack’s boisterous, exasperating nature---constantly being in your face and always insisting on invading your personal space. At the very thought of that bumbling fool, Vlad let out a “hmph” and furrowed his brow, his mood suddenly tarnished.

No matter how much he loathed the notion, he recognized that it was only a matter of time before he’d have to feign civility with Jack Fenton. Soon he’d have to “play nice” with the vexing ghost hunting enthusiast and try to pretend that the last 20 years had never happened. Though he managed to put his love for Maddie to bed, there was an infinitesimal chance of ignoring Jack’s buffoonery.

There was an even less of a chance that he’d forgive and forget what transpired all those years ago.

Sighing in a curtly way, the half ghost turned his head away from the sign, opting instead to gaze down the street.

How was he supposed to put it all behind him? The billionaire’s blood boiled at the **mere memory** of what ensued that day, as well as the following years in the hospital. Though he didn’t see a problem with the end result, he detested how he got there; he didn’t mind the fact that he was blessed with ghost powers, but he saw the whole accident as Jack making a fool out of him. His former college pal humiliated him, disgraced him, and robbed him of his pride, and that, he couldn’t forgive.

_And to think, I was debased by an idiot---an **idiot**!_

That was the real crime, here.

Feeling his gut constrict in annoyance, he took in a deep breath through his nose, and released it through his lips in an attempt to calm himself. He didn’t want to think of such things, not tonight.

As if on cue, the front door opened, revealing a smiling Danielle on the other side.

“Hey guys, you’re earlier---”

The teenager’s mouth fell agape, and her eyes stared in what could only be described as attracted fixation. Vlad’s heart quickened in pace, and he had to fight the supreme urge to take her into his arms. He wanted her to focus on him like that, all the time, like no one else---like **nothing else** mattered. The overwhelming love in his heart nearly conquered his senses, virtually dominating his impulses---causing him to swallow hard. Once again, it took all of his willpower to **not** do something sensual.

“Good evening, little badger,” the tycoon greeted, bearing a friendly smile.

“Ah…H-hi…” she stammered, still ogling him like a fine specimen of meat.

Her attention served only to ignite the man’s baser instincts, hoping to God that he was reading her correctly. Normally, he never had a reason to doubt his own observations, but concerning Dani, he could never be sure of anything with regard to her feelings for him.  

“Well, aren’t you going to invite me in?” he asked with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.

“Uh---y-yeah! My bad,” she said clumsily, moving out of the way.

The older man stepped inside, and immediately the scent of popcorn and sugar trailed up his nose, warranting a deep inhale. He took in more of the smell, feeling oddly comforted. It was so familiar; the kind of smell everyone knows. It brought with it pictures of movie theatres, groups of people standing in line for tickets or confectionaries, and pleasant chats before a film began. Of course, it had been years since Vlad had gone to an actual cinema, but he still remembered the best parts of the experience---other than the movie itself, which almost seemed to be inconsequential in comparison to the ritual of going in the first place. One doesn’t simply go to the movies to watch a film, but to enjoy the **entire** experience.

The business mogul strolled over to the couch and looked around the room. The upper floor was open to the living room, as evident by the very visible doors at the top of the landing. Over to the right was the entrance to the kitchen, where that delicious smell was coming from, and just off of that was a fire place. In front of him sat a television, coffee table, and bundles of blankets thrown into a heap on the floor.

Clasping his arms behind his back, Vlad addressed his little badger: “May I inquire as to the purpose of the blankets?”

“It’s to get comfy,” she explained shyly, glancing down at her sneakers. The billionaire was right in assuming her choice of attire for the evening, seeing as she wore a t-shirt and jeans, though the top was rather flattering on her, hugging her petite form nicely. The fabric was thin, so he could see the outline of her bra, which reminded him of the first time she’d worn a shirt akin to this one. The color was light---a pale orange, allowing the older half ghost to make out the black shade of the undergarment.

_Surely, she must have done that on purpose---to get my attention? Does she intend for me to notice? Has she any idea what this is doing to me?_

_This girl is testing me._

Collecting himself, he broke his shared gaze with the teenager and turned back to the kitchen, suddenly craving the goodies just beyond the threshold.

“So, uh…” Dani began, almost in a near squeak. “You look…different.”

Without looking at her, he gave his reply: “Yes well, I assumed we’d be doing something that involved a good deal of sitting, so I decided to dress in a way that would make that more comfortable.”

“You figured out that we’re watching horror movies?” she asked in curiosity.

“Please Danielle, it wasn’t that difficult,” he teased, sporting a cocky grin. “If they’re not at parties, teenagers can be found at home, watching movies or indulging in some other activity.”

“Like video games,” the young heroine commented.

“Indeed,” the older man affirmed.

The ghost girl rocked back and forth on her heels, baby blues at the carpet and arms behind her back. 

“Yeah, that’s pretty accurate.”

“I was a teenager once myself, you know,” he stated, glancing at her. He felt much more in control now.

“No kidding?” she asked playfully, looking up at him through her lashes.

She was too cute.

Far too cute.

“Of course.”

“I bet you did some crazy things as a kid, huh?”

He laughed. “I won’t know about that, Danielle.”

“Oh come on, everyone has stories about the stupid things they did as teenagers,” the young girl proclaimed. “You otta tell me some time.”

Vlad turned fully toward his little badger. “Maybe someday.”

She giggled, and he felt his resolve begin to melt. In an effort to control himself, he took in another deep breath, and as he exhaled he asked: “Now then, where are those friends of yours? You said you were all meeting here at 4 o’clock.”

“4 means 4:10 or 4:15 for us,” she stated bluntly.

The billionaire sighed. “Has punctuality died with your generation?”

When she giggled again, the businessman clenched his fist over his other hand.

_Why has this suddenly become so much harder?_

“Well, at least you’re here,” Dani said, a smile playing at her lips. “To be honest, I wasn’t sure you’d be up for this kind of thing.”

“Quite the contrary, little badger,” Vlad began. “I’m quite the fan of movies, especially the classics.”

“Yeah? Well, you’re in luck, ‘cause I’ve got a whole line of classic horror movies to watch,” the younger half ghost stated with a smile.

“I would expect no less,” he responded with one of his own, lowering his gaze and looking at her more acutely.

The ghost girl walked over to the blankets and scooped them up, and then proceeded to the other side of the couch and dumped them on the purple cushions, all while Vlad’s eyes followed her.

_If those blankets are meant to help us “get comfy”, I certainly hope she understands the implications; after all, how could I possibly fight the temptation of cuddle with her if given the opportunity? But then again, if she’s done this with her friends before, she’s probably not thinking of it in that context. Perhaps I should wait for her to let me know---that yes---she wants the same thing, but what if she doesn’t?_

“This isn’t too childish for you, is it?” the girl in question asked nervously, looking over her shoulder at her charming mentor.

“What? No, of course not,” the bachelor replied in earnest. In truth, he wanted absolutely nothing more.

Well, O.K., maybe that wasn’t **quite** true, but for now, snuggling with her under warm blankets would just make his day.

“Oh good,” she sighed in relief. “I was worried you wouldn’t like this.”

“If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have agreed to come, silly girl,” he teased in good humor, earning him a blush from the young heroine. 

The billionaire walked over to his pupil, struggling to hide the dark pleasure on his face. Her flushed features truly invigorated him, making him feel like a triumphant adolescent male who just scored a date for the prom. She was too much, far too endearing than should be legally permitted. The raven-haired half ghost could bend anyone to her will if she wanted to---it would certainly work on him. To think, that one such as her could have so much power over him and not be even remotely aware of it.

Or maybe she was, and was just playing with him? No, his little badger wasn’t like that; she wasn’t a sadistic manipulator like him.

When he reached her side, the heroine gazed up at the older man, those baby blue eyes sparkling with purity and innocence. This girl was inexperienced, young, and brimming with potential, in all **manner** of areas. 

“If I may be bold,” Vlad started with a grin. “I’m very grateful you invited me over tonight. I enjoy spending time with you, Danielle.”

Blush deepening, the teenaged ghost girl averted her gaze and opted to stare at a questionable stain on the carpet. How long had that been there?

“R-really?”

“Yes,” he said with a nod.

“Well, I like spending time with you too,” Dani agreed, swaying side to side.

“I know. I remember you telling me so.”

Her heart skipped a beat. He must have been referring to the incident with Desiree, when she confessed some rather sensitive things, and **almost** confessed her love for him. Was he finally brining it up, after a week of acting like nothing happened?

Was now a good time to ask him what it all meant?

The businessman felt like kicking the wall.

Why the hell had he said that?! Hadn’t he been personal trying to avoid mentioned anything from that day? Wasn’t he trying to ignore what transpired and hoped that Dani would do the same? After all, if it was true that she didn’t love him back, his admissions would be all for not---they would become meaningless. However, if she did love him, or even felt the smallest inclinations of affection, then he wouldn’t feel as antsy. But how was he to know? Since his ability to read her had been compromised, Vlad’s awareness of her feelings was entirely absent.

He knew that she respected him, admired him, and saw him as a comrade, but beyond that? Not so much.

“So…uh…you remember that, huh?” the ghost girl asked suddenly, taking the older man out of his thoughts.

“Yes, very clearly. It was only last week, you know.”

“Yeah…but…so, about what happened---the things you said…” she stammered, hints of nervousness leaking from her tone. It was clear she wasn’t comfortable with this topic.

Had he offended her that much?

“Danielle---”

“Wh-what did it all mean?” she inquired, glancing straight into his eyes. “I don’t understand what you were getting at.”

Dread invaded the business mogul’s stomach. 

 _Why did she have to phrase it like that?_  

“I’m…I’m confused,” she stated truthfully, folding her eyebrows and mirroring a hopelessly befuddled child. “I don’t want to think I **know** what it means---I don’t want to assume anything, but I just don’t know.”

“Danielle,” Vlad said in a comforting tone, taking a step closer to her. “You don’t need to be so concerned. I assure you, what I said doesn’t have to mean anything if you don’t want it to.”

“But it does! It has meaning…it has to. You said weird things and acted differently, but it was all **real** ; you were under a spell that forced you to act according to your ‘true self’, which is what Sam wished for.”

“Be that as it may---”

“So there has to be meaning to it, and I…I just want to know if I’m reading too much into it or not.”

With such conviction, Vlad found it difficult to offer a rebuttal. What could he say to her? He couldn’t lie, but he also couldn’t admit his feelings for her, and any explanation he could give would allude to those feelings. Either way, it was a risk, a gamble---lie and risk missing an opportunity of a life time, or confess and put his credibility in jeopardy. If only he could somehow test the waters, learn whether or not the person his little badger loved was him.

“Let me ask you this; how do **you** perceive my words and actions? What is the meaning **you** think they have?”

The younger half ghost stared at him agape. What reply was she to give him? If she was honest, she’d run the risk of sounding like a hormone-driven youth who misinterprets her considerate mentor. However, if she was right…

“I…I don’t know. You said you were jealous of Sam, and you said you wanted to be around me all the time, that you couldn’t stand another minute away from me…”

“So, what do you think that means?” the older man pressed ever so gently, placing his hands on the girl’s shoulders. Perhaps if he got her take on the matter, he could judge how she feels.

She gazed at the carpet again. “I-I…I think---”

The doorbell rang, startling the two half ghosts. Dani just about jumped out of her skin, and Vlad flinched at the sound. For a second, they stood still, neither one moving a muscle. The eccentric bachelor cursed the arrival of the Samuel and Tucker once his mind was back in focus. He was so close to discovering how she felt about what happened, but now it would have to wait.

He wasn’t sure how much longer his patience would win out.

In Dani’s case, she couldn’t tell if she was relieved or disappointed. She was terrified of revealing her true thoughts about what had transpired that day, but at the same time, she didn’t want the conversation to end. If she’d told the older man how she saw those conversations of theirs, as well as his actions, then she would’ve been one step closer to learning whether or not he felt the same way.

She wasn’t sure how much longer she could take not knowing.

The young heroine glanced back up at the billionaire’s face---that devastatingly good-looking mug of his---and saw his navy orbs bearing into her own. His gaze was intense, but she couldn’t turn away. Though this stare wasn’t oppressive or commanding, it had a great power, a tremendous influence, and it trapped her. His eyes seemed troubled, worried, almost desperate. It was as if he wanted her to know something, that this hidden message was incredibly important, but for whatever reason it wasn’t coming to light.

Dani felt a strange urge to hug him then, to tell him that everything was going to be alright, but she didn’t heed it. After all, wouldn’t it seem very weird for her to do such a thing out of the blue?

_Although, it doesn’t seem so out of the blue, I mean, you don’t usually have that kind of look in you eyes unless your deeply worried about something._

Could he have, perchance, wanted to hear what she had to say? But if that was the case, why was he so invested in her interpretation of his behavior that day? Maybe he was trying to make sure she didn’t think any less of him (which she didn’t, and even told him so). Was the tycoon concerned that she felt frightened by what happened, or even repulsed? She could imagine why he would think this way---since **he** probably viewed his behavior as shameful, he most likely thought **she** did too.

When the doorbell rang again, the ghost girl was yanked out of her head. She felt Vlad’s grip on her shoulders tighten, and suddenly she didn’t want him to ever let go.

None the less, she had to let her friends in.

“B-better get the door,” she squeaked, seeing her reflection in his eyes.

“Yes, if you must,” he replied, dropping his warm hands from her person. He mentally kicked himself for phrasing it like that, be he couldn’t stop himself. It was as if he was operating on auto-pilot.

The heroine walked around him and advanced toward the door, all the while wondering why he said what he had. Did he not want to her to answer the door? Did he want her to stay there, with him?

_Quite projecting, Dani! You’ll only make this worse for yourself._

Upon reaching the front door, she pulled it open and witnessed a smirking Tucker leaning her ear forward, as well as seeing Sam standing to her right, arms crossed.

“Oh---uh---hey!” the computer geek exclaimed, her smirk giving way to a nervous smile.

“What were you doing?”

“She thought since you didn’t answer the door right away, that you must have been spooning with Vlad or something,” the goth enlightened, annoyance evident in his tone.

“N-not so loud!” the teenager panicked, waving her hands in a manic fashion.

Tucker stood up and held out a plastic bag of sweets. “I couldn’t help myself! I got some more candy on the way over.”

“Uh, we’ve got a lot already,” the half ghost replied, glimpsing at the contents before looking about up at her friend.

“Well, I’ve got a massive sweet tooth.”

“As do I,” the older man remarked, standing right behind Dani, surprising her.

“For real? You like sweets?” the techno geek asked with a tilt of her head.

“Very much so, actually. I enjoy my fair share of confectionaries every now and again.”

“Coolio, ‘cause I’ve got a ton, and Dani bought a helluva lot yesterday, right girl?”

Gathering herself, the younger half ghost nodded and eyeballed the bag again. “Y-yup.”

Then she stepped aside, granting her friends entry to the house. The rebel immediately made his way passed Vlad (but not before sending him a warning glare) and plopped himself down on the couch. Tucker, on the other hand, strolled over to the coffee table and set her bag down, then busied herself with emptying the contents of the backpack she’d brought with her. She dumped a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a pair of pajamas onto the floor and shuffled them over to the corner of the couch.

“So, Jazz is gone for the night, right?”

The businessman cocked his head. “Oh yes, I meant to inquire about Jasmine. Is she not home?”

“She’s sleeping over at a friend’s tonight,” Sam explained brusquely.

“Uh huh, so we have the whole house to ourselves,” Dani chimed in, stroking a lock of her hair.

“Sweetness,” Tucker commented, hopping unto the couch. “So should we start with the movies, or get the snacks?”

“Why don’t you guys get the first movie going, and I’ll get the rest of the snacks from the kitchen?” the ghost girl suggested.

“I’ll help you, Danielle,” Vlad offered, following her into the other room before either Dani or Sam could insist otherwise.

At the sound of an irritated sigh, the bachelor smirked.

The young girl advanced toward the circular kitchen table and picked up a plastic pumpkin-shaped bucket of candy---one that was truly alarming in size. The older half ghost went over to the microwave and grabbed the bulky popcorn bag from inside and turned to his pupil.

“Where do you keep the large bowls?”

“Oh, lets use one of the big mixing bowls. They’re in those cabinets,” the heroine said as she pointed to a certain set of cabinet doors to the right of the sink. The tycoon pulled out the biggest one he could find and poured the buttery contents into the metallic bowl.

“Wait, I didn’t even think…do you prefer buttered popcorn or kettle corn?” the younger half ghost asked with hints of guilt in her voice.

“Buttered,” the businessman clarified with a smile, signaling to her that all was well.

“Oh good. I didn’t want to get something that you didn’t like.”

“I would be happy with anything you provided for me, Danielle,” he declared, turning to her with the bowl of popcorn in his arm. “Though I’m delighted you’ve thought about what I might or might not like.”

“Uh---y-yeah,” she stuttered, feeling the heat return to her cheeks.

She didn’t think she’d ever get tired of hearing him say such things to her.

“Shall we?” Vlad inquired, gesturing to the living room with his free hand.

“Mm hmm,” Dani replied as she reached for the other two plastic buckets, one that looked like a witch and Frankenstein respectively. The former held Hostess snack cakes and the latter contained Little Debbie ones.

“Here, allow me,” the business mogul advised as he took the witch bucket in his other hand.

“Thanks,” the ghost girl acknowledged, looking up at him.

“Not at all,” he responded, meeting her gaze.

For a moment, they remained like that, staring into one another’s eyes, just appreciating each other. Vlad’s eyes were soft, welcoming---the exact opposite of the vibe he demonstrated during their conflict with the ghostly wish granter. Dani had known that her enchanting mentor was more than his baser urges, and this display of tenderness only further confirmed that. She knew there was more to him that what Sam saw, even what **she** saw. After all, no one was completely good or evil (at least, a good majority of people, anyway).

Much too soon for Dani’s liking, the eccentric bachelor turned away and exited the kitchen, so she followed behind.

He set the containers of goodies down on the coffee table and walked around to the center of the couch and sat down, much to the goth’s displeasure. His pupil, meanwhile, put her cargo down and went over to the TV, making sure Tucker and Sam had selected a movie.

_Starting with Halloween…nice!_

“Gotta kick this night off with the best of the best,” the computer geek proclaimed, curling her legs up.

“Good call,” the younger half ghost praised, pointing a finger to her friend. Then she took the remote from the TV stand and backed up a bit, making sure it was aligned with the sensor.

Once the TV was on the right setting, Dani stepped back even further and waited for the menu to load. Immediately, Tucker jumped off the couch and jogged to the light switch, casting the room into darkness when she flicked it downward.

After pressing “play” when the menu presented its myriad of options, Dani walked over to the couch, eyeing the spot in between Sam and Vlad. Before she could get around the coffee table, however, Tucker launched herself across the room and plopped into that seat. When the ghost girl blinked in confusion, the techno geek gave her a look that just screamed: _Just keepin’ with the girl code_.

Silently thanking her dear friend (who she fully intended on repaying later), the raven-haired heroine moved to sit at Vlad’s right, but then he slid down, offering her more room. Now he was sitting in the spot Tucker had once occupied.

Feeling a surge of excitement, the teenager sat down next to her mentor, trying her best not to smile.

She was unsuccessful.

No doubt the rebel was unhappy with this arrangement, but nevertheless Dani heard no rebuke from him. Most likely, he was keeping it to himself, rather than causing a scene.

She silently thanked him too for that.

“Yo Sam, hand me one of those blankets,” Tucker requested, pointing to the heap that the goth had chucked on the chair adjacent to him.

“Sure thing.”

He complied, reaching over and taking a long green blanket and handing it to his friend. Then he took a blue one for himself, spreading it over his lap.

The computer geek kicked off her shoes and curled her legs up once again. Then threw the blanket over herself, covering everything below her neck.

“Want one too?” she asked Dani.

“Uh---sure,” the girl said with a nod.

Without a word, the goth grabbed a red one from the pile and handed it off to Tucker, who gave it to the young heroine.

“Thanks Tuck.”

The blanket was more like a comforter---it was rather large. It could easily fit two people under its cozy fabric.

Dani eyed Vlad out of the corner of her vision, who was sitting with one leg crossed over the other and an arm resting over the top of the couch. If she wanted to, she could snuggle up under his arm and lay against his chest.

The thought had her heart thumping.

She glanced over at the screen, seeing black and hearing the eerie tones of children reciting a Halloween limerick.  

When she looked back at the older man, he was gazing at her---or more specifically, the blanket in her possession.

“Ah…” she uttered, not sure what to say.

He knew that blanket was more than capable of covering to the two of them, but how was he to go about suggesting such a notion? He could be direct, but perhaps that would make her feel uncomfortable. If he was more covert, she may not pick up on what he’s asking. Maybe he should let it go?

_But when will I have another opportunity like this? When will I have this chance again? The lights are off, so no one can see, and this couch is already quite small---all four of us are practically squished together as it is. Perhaps if my tone of voice is innocent enough…_

“Danielle, would it be alright with you if we shared that? I don’t wish to disturb Tucker and Samuel,” he whispered so that only the young girl could hear.

Though it was dark, he could clearly see she was embarrassed. “Y-yeah, no prob.”

She casted her eyes down to the fabric, stomach performing barrel rolls.

_SCORE!_

The younger half ghost threw the red blanket over her mentor’s lower half, and then herself, suddenly feeling a little braver. Though Vlad was just being considerate of her friends, Dani took this as an invitation to be a bit bold.

She slightly leaned into him, pressing her shoulder against his side, with just the tip making light contact.

He noticed, and had to suppress the urge to pull her all the way against him. The tycoon’s own heart was increasing in rate, and his gut felt invaded by butterflies. His long arm, being draped across the top of the couch, itched to hug her, hold her. If she was leaning into him like this, then wasn’t that a sign that she wanted to cuddle?

Or maybe she just happened to move and didn’t notice that they were touching?

No, she had to have noticed.

His suspicions seemed to be confirmed when she leaned into him a little bit more, now with her arm pressed to his side.

There could be no mistake about it; they were **touching**.

Unable to control himself anymore, Vlad’s arm flew down and draped over her shoulders, with his hand resting on his pupil’s upper arm. He pulled Dani against his body as soon as his limb touched her.

The ghost girl emitted a quiet squeak---one that was more out of surprise than anything else. But after a millisecond or two, her brain registered what had just occurred, and her face flushed a deep scarlet.

_Thank God the lights are off._

The billionaire was hugging her! They were almost spooning on the couch!

Feeling even braver now, Dani brought her hand to his chest and supported her cheek against the smooth surface of his silk shirt, also feeling the older man’s strong muscles through the thin fabric. She had noted how this top hugged his upper body; it was almost as if Vlad was going to burst out the shirt, seeing how taut it was.

The movie opened on the Myer’s house, but the young heroine wasn’t paying attention. She moved her hand over her mentor’s chest, stopping when she felt his pounding heartbeat. Was he nervous about the movie? Did he dislike their current position?

But wouldn’t that be odd, considering **he** was the one who made a move first?

_Maybe he feels the same way as me right now._

The thought was nice indeed, imagining that he was all giddy at her touch like she was with his. It seemed like the proof of his love was only growing, yet her doubts still persisted. Dani realized then that subtle hints wouldn’t be enough; she would never truly know how he felt about her unless he came right out and said it.

As 8-year-old Michael stalked into his house and retrieved a butcher knife from a kitchen drawer, the teenager felt the business mogul’s chest rise and fall, his breaths shallow and hard. It was clear he was trying to calm himself, but was having some issue.

Deciding to pull away (even if she didn’t want to), the ghost girl slid her hand back over his ribcage, but before she even reached his right arm or leaned away entirely, Vlad pressed her into him more, so that she was flush against his broad form.

Apparently, he didn’t want her to pull away.

When she looked up she made eye contact, and those navy orbs of his communicated that very message. In fact, this gaze looked similar to one of his commanding ones, albeit without the demand for her undivided attention; this gaze was solely expressing a desire to remain as she was.

This was a gift of the older man---having the ability to communicate his will without having a speak a single word. He could ask anything of anyone, and all he had to do was stare into their eyes. Vlad always believed it was because of the way he carried himself, reeking of money and power as he did. His very presence screamed “authority”, causing people to do his bidding without need of verbal orders.

He was glad it worked in this instance, for he feared that if he spoke his desire out loud, he would be meat with rebuke.

However, he was very well aware that communicating his love for his little badger would be a bit difficult, as it was far too immense to express through a staring contest.

Taking his unspoken wish to heart, Dani relaxed herself against him, just as she did before, though his hold on her did not lighten. Maybe he just wanted to hug her tighter anyway?

Little Michael skulked up the stairs, reaching the top of the landing and reached down to the clown mask on the floor. As he crept into his older sister’s room, Dani attempted to levee her nerves by focusing on her breathing. Taking in a deep inhale, she found that her rhythm was in perfect time with the billionaire’s own breathing.

He was losing his cool. Embracing her not only failed to satiate him, but it had---in fact---served to amply his desires up to 11. It also didn’t help that she wasn’t resisting him.

_Does that imply that the person she loves is indeed me? If she was truly uncomfortable with this position, she would have tried harder to pull away. All I had to do was look at her, and she stayed put. And she didn’t appear afraid, so she complied of her own free will. She must want this as badly as I do._

Though the rational made sense, he couldn’t be sure. He reasoned then that he wouldn’t know how she honestly felt unless she told him out right.

Judith Myers screamed and fell to the floor as Michael committed his first kill, and the young heroine strained to focus on the fictional atrocity. Sure, she’d seen the film many times before, so maybe that had something do to with her investment in it, but she couldn’t believe that spooning with the older half ghost could distract her this much. If she wasn’t currently do that, then surely, she’d be distracted by something else…right?  

With her ear right up against his chest, she could hear the vibrations of his heart. It hadn’t calmed, but instead maintained it current rate.

_I hate that I’m the one making him so physically agitated, but he doesn’t want me to pull away, so I don’t know what to do._

Michael trailed outside, meeting his father on the lawn of the house, and when his face was revealed, Vlad found that something equally as disturbing as a bloody knife-wielding child came to life under the blanket. His eyes went wide as he felt the groin region of his jeans tighten.

He bit his lip.

_Butter Biscuits, why did this have to happen **now**?!_

Swallowing hard, the businessman moved his leg so that it was no longer crossed over the other, placing it instead right next to the other leg. Expect, this position squished him in a painful way, causing him to wince. The sudden jerk of his body caught the young girl’s attention, and she gazed up at him.

_Please no, don’t look at me like that, with those eyes of yours…_

To anyone one else, Dani’s stare would appear normal, but to him, it was irresistible.

And now that he was turned on, the billionaire was afraid his self-control would evaporate the moment he returned her gaze.

So instead, the older man watched as a pumpkin appeared on screen, inching closer and closer as the opening credits faded in and out. John Carpenter’s haunting theme resonated in the room, canceling out all other sound, including Vlad’s own heartbeat.

If he could preoccupy his mind, then his erection should go away on its own, and he would be able to enjoy the rest of the night in bliss.

But with his little badger so close to him, touching his chest and leaning against his side, he feared this might be impossible. Plus, he could feel her breasts pressed into his arm and ribcage.

He swallowed again.

The pumpkin drew nearer, the music getting more intense as the gourd just about encompassed the entire screen.

But suddenly, the music became louder, invading everyone’s eardrums in a disconcerting way. It was at the point of being too loud, but not quite ear-piercing.

“Hey, did one of you guys turn the volume up?” Tucker asked the two half ghosts.

The older man cleared his throat. “No, no we didn’t.”

“Nope,” Dani answered, inwardly cringing at the sound of her nervous voice. She really needed to get a hold of herself.

The music slowly rose in volume, creating the illusion that the party of four was surrounded by speakers. They even looked around, despite knowing this wasn’t the case.

“Maybe the TV’s faulty?” the computer geek conjected.

“No, it would be the sound system, but I don’t think that’s the issue,” Sam disagreed, sitting up.

Unexpectedly, the pumpkin shot out from the screen, sailing toward Tucker and Dani. The girls gasped, and Tucker threw herself to the left, colliding with Sam’s torso as Vlad pulled the young heroine further into him by wrapping both arms around her, effectively taking her into his lap.

The credits stopped appearing and the screen remained black, but the music still poured out of the TV’s speakers. The pumpkin smashed into the window behind them, spraying seeds and pumpkin guts all over the closed curtains.

“What the hell?” the goth remarked.

“What **was** that?” Tucker inquired with apprehension. “What just happened?”

The billionaire narrowed his eyes, looking about the space. “Something’s wrong.”

“No kidding, genius!” the rebel teen shouted with a glare. “Things like that don’t just happen!”

“Holy crap that was close,” the techno geek sighed in relief, still feeling the adrenaline. “You O.K., Dani?”

The girl in question collected herself and looked over at her friend. “Yeah, I’m good.” She was leaning across her mentor’s upper body, with her knee just inches from his crotch. Luckily, she hadn’t found out about the business mogul’s little problem.

“Maybe someone should get the lights,” Tucker recommended.

“I concur,” Vlad agreed. “Samuel?”

“What? Why me?” he questioned. “You’re the adult here, you do it.”

“It’s fine, I’ll get them,” the ghost girl stated, not wanting another fight between them to occur. She lifted herself off of the silver-haired half ghost as he loosened his grip, even if every cell in his body was demanding he keep her close at hand.

Once she touched the floor, she walked over to the switch and flicked it up, but the room remained bathed in darkness.

“Uh oh,” the techno geek vocalized.

Dani’s eyes wandered to the TV, suddenly feeling a huge sense of dread. If the lights weren’t working, then why was the music still playing?

The tune had to be coming from the walls themselves, since it couldn’t have been the speakers.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” the young heroine said, cold apprehension oozing from her tone.

Then her ghost sense went off.

In the center of the room, a green spiral manifested above their heads, creating a bellowing wind. As the music went on (as if on loop) the sound of pounding hooves permeated the space, and before their eyes, an imposing steed launched out of the mini portal, with what looked like a knight riding it. The horse was jet black with enormous bat wings, red eyes, massive fangs that hung out of its mouth, and an alarmingly sharp horn, as well as a fiery green mane, tail, and hooves. Riding this monstrosity was a ghost clad in black armor, wearing a flaming purple cape and who possessed piercing green eyes under a helmet that otherwise shrouded his features.

The ghost lifted his head up, staring down his nose (if he even had one) at the party of four.

“Mortals, gaze upon me, for I shall be the last thing you ever see,” he declared authoritatively.

“So you’re the one who halted our movie night?” Dani questioned, feeling her bravery return. Sure, he was intimidating, but he was just another ghost, and more importantly---he interfered with her spontaneous spoon-session with Vlad!

“I am the Fright Knight, the incarnation of terror; the spirit of Halloween, and you have taken that which is most precious to me, and for that you will suffer the consequences, and so shall your associates,” the ghost threatened, brandishing a morning star made of green ecto-energy.

“Oh Lord,” the older man breathed, his eyes darting to the ghost girl. “Danielle, have you by chance an otherworldly sword in your possession?”

She returned his gaze. “Yeah, how did you know?”

_That’s right! I wanted to show them the cool sword I found! I guess I got so caught up in Vlad being here that I forgot._

“So you admit your folly!” the Fright Knight exclaimed, his horse rearing up and kicking the air in aggravated excitement.

“Danielle! Return the sword at once! You must give the Soul Shredder back to the Fright Knight before he lays waste to this town!”

“It is too late!” the ghostly brawler proclaimed as the wind picked up. “The deed is done, and now you shall suffer the wrath of **true** fear!”

He charged at Dani, who yiped and dove out of the way of the phantom morning star, as he had thrown it in her direction. Once it was imbedded in the wall beside her, purple fire surged up the wall and spread across the entire house, slipping around the corner upstairs and ducking into the kitchen, as well as the lab. The flames illuminated the room, creating dancing shadows on every surface, including the faces of the group.

When the heroine hit the floor, she wasted no time in transforming into her ghost form. She rose, brushing her arm off, and furrowed her brow at the Fright Knight. But when he came at her again, she yelped.

“Dani!” Tucker and Sam shouted in unison.

“Danielle!” the billionaire panicked, then bolted to her position, transforming into Plasmius mid-sprint. He shoved her out of the way before the Fright Knight’s mount kicked her, thereby attacking him instead. The force of the horse’s kick caused Vlad to hit the wall--- **hard**.

“Vlad!” the younger half ghost cried.

He grunted, holding his injured abdomen. “You have to get out of here,” he urged. “The Fright Knight is an extremely formidable opponent. He was supposed to have been sealed away forever after his master was defeated. He’s much too strong for you.”

“No way am I leaving you to deal with him alone!” she asserted. “If it’s my fault he’s here, then I have to fix it, right?”

“Danielle, this isn’t something you can fix, so please, go somewhere safe…” he beseeched before wincing due to his injury. Even as a ghost, it felt like some of his ribs had snapped.

“I can’t! I won’t leave you!”

The Fright Knight summoned a flaming green skull and chucked it at the two half ghosts, but at the last second the billionaire created a barrier, blocking the oncoming attack.

“Take your friends and go, now!” he ordered.

The demonic steed slammed its hooves against the barrier, causing cracks to form.

_No way…even Vlad’s shield is taking damage??_

The tycoon leaned on one knee and pressed his palms against the barrier. He gritted his teeth, displaying his own menacing fangs. He applied much of his strength to keeping the barrier stable, but even so the cracks persisted.

“You have to go!”

“But---”

“Dani!” Sam yelled from across the room. “Use the Thermos!”

Instinctually, the young half ghost reached for the Fenton Thermos, which she kept hidden in her jumpsuit, but found it wasn’t there.

“Oh no…” she began, pausing as more dread coursed through her body. “I left it in my room.”

“The Thermos won’t be enough to subdue him,” the businessman stated. “He could easily escape and destroy it.”

“Seriously?” the ghost girl asked in utter disbelief, shock and anxiety blending in her baby blues.

Then the Fright Knight pulled back from the two half ghosts, instead turning to Sam and Tucker. The horse neighed in an ungodly fashion and raced over to the petrified teenagers, with the rider manifesting a ball of energy in his hand. 

“No!” the white-haired heroine cried, flying out of the shield and zipping over to her friends, absolute panic dominating her brain.

She zipped under the hellish mount and seized her friends before the Fright Knight’s ecto-energy blast hit them.

Rather, it hit the flame-consumed wall.

The older man dissolved the barrier and flew after the ghostly brawler, sending a volley of his own energy blasts his way. The Fright Knight created a purple diamond-shaped shield from his arm and blocked the assault, earning him a disgruntled “tch” from Vlad.

_If I can buy them time, Danielle and her friends should be able to escape. It’ll be up to me to send this peril back into the Ghost Zone, but I need his sword in order to do it._

Where had his little badger even obtained the Soul Shredder in the first place? It was supposed to be lost in the Ghost Zone forever, left to rot in some obscure corner of the supernatural realm for all time. He hated to think that she just chanced upon it during an excursion and decided to take it home with her---because there were two things that were very wrong with that theory. The first being, of course, that Danielle was somehow able to locate something he’d been looking for for **years** , and the other being that she wasn’t a fool, so she should know better than to take mysterious ghost relics without care or concern for the consequences.

He had studied much about the Fright Knight, and all the information he’d collected over the years told him that even **he** may have an issue in besting him. Vlad knew he himself was the most powerful ghost in the Ghost Zone, but that was without the presence of the ghostly brawler.

After the Fright Knight’s shield vanished, the tycoon fired more blasts, and his adversary leaped off his horse and manifested an ecto-spear, which he then threw at the billionaire. Though the older man was able to dodge, he was soon confronting the Knight face-to-face, seeing as he had landed in front of him. He swung his armored-fists at the bachelor, who in response, blocked the ghostly brawler’s attacks with guards, and whenever he saw an opening, retaliated with blows of his own.

Meanwhile, Dani soared upstairs with the intent of retrieving the Thermos from her room, as well as the Soul Shredder. Maybe there wasn’t much she could do, but she couldn’t just abandon the man she loved to fight the very embodiment of terror by himself!

When she reached the top of the stairs, she found that something was terribly wrong---the hall stretched on forever, with multiple doors lining the walls.

As the fire retreated into the very growing distance, it morphed the immediate area into something it wasn’t, creating an expansive space that echoed with the wails of unknown voices. This made the trio look behind them, and they saw the same thing happening with the other half of the hallway.

It didn’t take a genius to assume that the rest of the house was changing in a similar fashion.

“Hurry, we gotta get to your room!” Sam persisted.

“Yeah, we can’t leave Vlad down there,” Tucker added.

With a determined visage, Dani flew to her door and phased through it, but found that she was in the bathroom, not her bedroom.  

Although, this definitely wasn’t the bathroom she was used to.

The room was much larger, and completely void of windows. It was dark, cold, and smelled quite suspect. The tiles were grey with flecks of black, perhaps of mold or mildew. The walls matched the floors, and extended to a 12 foot ceiling---a whole foot taller than the ceiling in her normal bathroom. In addition, the configuration of the amenities was all wrong; the toilet was facing the trio, on the far wall, the sink sat on the same wall, but further down, and the bathtub was situated in the middle of the room, seemingly beckoning them to peer over its porcelain edge.

There were also cracks in the floor and walls, jetting across them like long, thin, crooked black fingers.

When Dani touched the floor, her boots gave a delicate clack that echoed throughout the space, making it seem somehow more hollow.

“What the crap?” the techno geek asked no one in particular, dread leaking from her voice.

“It has to be the Fright Knight. His powers are changing the layout of this house,” the rebel observed.

The heroine released her friends, and all three of them stood just inside the bathroom, not sure if they wanted to explore this new and nerve-wracking space.

“You guys should stay close to me,” the ghost girl advised.

“Like I wasn’t going to,” Tucker remarked, clutching her shirt.

“We should get out of here,” Sam recommended. “This obviously isn’t Dani’s room, so we shouldn’t hang around here.”

“But how are we gonna find Dani’s room if the house is morphing on us?”

“We’ll just have to check every door.”

“Yeah, ‘cause that’s not a recipe for disaster.”

“Sam’s right,” the half ghost chimed in, facing the computer geek. “We don’t really have any choice.”

“Joy,” Tucker replied sarcastically.

The trio walked out of the bathroom with Dani opening and closing the door. When they gazed down the halls again, they found that they were much, much longer than a few minutes ago. The purple flames were so far away now, looking like mere flickers of light.

“Which way should we start with first?” the goth inquired.

“I dunno man, but this is really starting to get to me,” Tucker confessed.

“It’ll be alright, Tuck, we can get through this,” the white-haired half ghost encouraged. “We’ve seen all kinds of weird ghost things before. We can handle this.”

Though her face was hardly convincing, the computer geek nodded in agreement, attempting to appear brave.

Then Sam happened to glance over to the living room, and gasped.

Loudly.

“What’s wrong?” the ghost girl asked in trepidation.

“The living room…” he began, eyes wide and pointing down the stairs. “Its gone.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this took me so long to update DX This work was originally going to be 3 chapters, but I ended up writing so much that I decided to split it into 2, making 4 chapters in total. And this is where the violence comes in. Again, I'm super sorry it took me so long, but I promise that the last chapter will be up not long after I post this one.

“What do you mean it’s gone?” Tucker inquired in slight panic. When she looked over the banister, she got her answer.

Instead of seeing the couch, coffee table, TV, fireplace, and entryway into the kitchen, the computer geek saw nothing but a pit of never ending darkness, possibly reaching miles and miles down.

“Holy crap…”

“Where’s Vlad and the Fright Knight?” Dani asked with great unease. Did they disappear into the pit?

“Oh man, who knows what’s down there!” the techno geek exclaimed in concern. “I can’t see anything!”

“If they’re still in the house, they’ll probably be behind one of the doors,” the goth put together. “Since the whole house is changing and growing, they could be anywhere.”

“Oh God…” the ghost girl muttered.

_This is all my fault! Vlad is Lord knows where and he might be in trouble right now! If he was **that** concerned about me facing the Fright Knight, then that has to mean that the guy’s seriously powerful---and now he’s fighting him alone!! _

She had to find the older billionaire. If something were to happen to him, she wouldn’t be able to live with herself.

Her stomach danced with anxiety and her heart ached with worry.

“Let’s get a move on,” Sam urged, turning his body in the direction of the left hallway.

“Agreed, I just wanna get outta here,” the techno enthusiast concurred, leaving her spot at the banister to join the rebel teen.

The young heroine clenched her fists in resolution, and also turned to the hallway, hovering just a few inches off the ground. Then she drifted down the elongated corridor, both her friends in tow.

As they approached the first door, the wailing got louder, inciting pure dread in the trio. Sure, the Ghost Zone was full of howling voices, but they were usually so far in the distance that they sounded more akin to an echo---and sometimes it was just some ghost who was being overly dramatic. Now, however, it was inescapable, unrelenting, and above all, **very close**. It seemed as if the source of the wailing was right next to their ears.

Dani reached for the doorknob, feeling a chill go up her spine.

She opened the door, and beyond the threshold they were greeted by a rotting garden, one that far exceeded the limits of a normal room.

In fact, this didn’t seem to be a room at all.

It had a sky---a grey, overcast sky.

“It looks like the Fright Knight’s powers are doing more than warp the layout of the house,” Sam concluded.

“What should we do?” Tucker asked.

The half ghost’s brow furrowed. “We need to check every single room.”

She floated inside, suddenly feeling a gentle breeze caress her features. The garden was massive, stretching on and on, and most likely bending and twisting into a maze. All the plants were dead, their stems grey and their flowers dull, with their leaves dry and mangled. Situated at certain points in the garden were large stone planters, measuring at least 4 feet high and 15 feet in length, with intricate cravings etched into the cracked granite.

Directly in front of them was a foliage-covered statue, depicting a woman holding a generously-sized water jug. She wore what looked like some kind of robe or toga. Her expression was gentle, but void of any life.

“How are we supposed to check this **entire** room for Vlad and the Fright Knight?” the techno geek questioned. “This place is huge.”

“You guys can look on the ground while I search in the air,” the white-haired heroine advised.

“What happened to staying close?”

“I’ll fly overhead so we don’t lose sight of each other,” she answered, looking up at the sky. Then she gingerly ascended, rising above the towering arches and vine-consumed fences. Glancing around, she realized just how big this garden was---it stretched on forever.

“What does it look like from up there?” the goth inquired. “Do you see anything?”

“Its…” She trailed off. What could she possibly say that didn’t make the situation seem hopeless? How was she supposed to keep up morale when even **she** was starting to panic on the inside? Her mentor was missing, the Fright Knight could wreak havoc at any moment, and this room was endless---not to mention they had a myriad of other rooms to check.

“Lemme guess,” the computer geek began, crossing her arms. “It’s a labyrinth, isn’t it?”

Before responding, Dani gulped. “Yup.”

“Wonderful!” Tucker exclaimed ironically, throwing her arms into the air.

“Vlad! Vlad are you here?!” the ghost girl shouted, using her hands as a substitute mega phone.

No response.

“Vlad?!”

“Maybe we should move on,” the rebel suggested, looking back at the open door.

“Vlad! Vlad, can you hear me?!”

Nothing.

Another breeze blew passed, chilling their youthful faces. The expired plants swayed gently in the wind, giving the illusion of life. This wind also howled through the shrubs of withered roses and listless carnations.

Other than this unsettling squall, and the resulting rustling of the floral, there was no sound. This place seemed to be cut off from the rest of the house---nay---the world, given how silent it was, so still. It was almost peaceful in a way, if not for the somewhat creepy ambiance; it felt abandoned, empty, haunted.

Plus, the very present reality of what was going on still stuck in the forefront of the trio’s minds, demolishing any possibility of ease.

“We could spend an eternity in just this one room,” Tucker noted.

“Which is why we need to getting going,” Sam insisted.

The young heroine barely heard their words over her growing unrest. The poor thing’s mind was all over the place, trying to the find the eccentric bachelor as well as make sure he was O.K.

“Vlad!” she called, her voice dripping with alarm. “Vlad, where are you?!”

“Dani, it’s pointless!” the goth shouted, looking upward. “He’s not here, so let’s just get to the next room!”

Her gaze bore down at her friend. “But what if he **is** here and we just don’t see him?”

“I doubt that’s the case, man,” the techno geek disagreed. “He was fighting the Fright Knight. Odds are, he still is.”

“Right. If we find one, we find the other, and it’s clear that neither one of them is here,” Sam concluded.

In the end, the half ghost knew they were right. They were wasting time, and if they were going to catch up with her mentor and the ghostly brawler, they had to get in and get out of each room as quickly as possible.

But she had a slight inclination that she wouldn’t feel completely at ease doing this until her fears were alleviated.

After all, she didn’t want to come across a room with the older half ghost inside, only to assume he wasn’t there and move on without him.

“Alright, let’s just hurry up and find him,” she urged before lowering to the ground.

The trio advanced back to the door when Dani’s ghost sense went off, causing her to gasp.

They turned around in unison, seeing a gargantuan serpent rise from deep within the maze. It was the color of white Tailor’s chalk---plain and dull. Its eyes blazed a fiery red and its fangs protruded from its wide and venom-filled mouth.

 “Oh boy,” Tucker said in worry.

“Get out of here!” the ghost girl shouted, gesturing with a wave of her arm. “I’ll hold ‘um off!” 

Sam and Tucker bolted toward the door, only for it to slam shut. Upon reaching it, the computer geek tried to yank it open, but to no avail.

“It’s locked!”

“Oh here, move!” the goth ordered, pushing the techno whiz out of the way, proceeding then to grab the doorknob and twist, finding that it didn’t revolve all the way. “Crap!”

“See?”

The serpent hissed at a frighteningly loud octave, barreling toward the baffled (and greatly alarmed) trio. Dani flew back to her friends, grabbing them, and rolling out of the way of the creature’s snapping jaw.

When she turned around, the young girl saw her opponent’s eyes meeting hers. It didn’t seem swayed by their well-timed evasive maneuver, for in fact, the spectral reptile’s stare was intent, ready to continue the hunt. 

“Great, now what?” Tucker asked.

The serpent set its sights on the party of three again, darting its poison-drenched, forked tongue out of its mouth. Then it hissed again, charging at the teenagers.

“Duck!” the heroine cried.

Sam and Tucker complied, and as the ghost drew nearer, Dani stood tall and fired a beam of ecto-energy from her palm.

The blast made contact, hitting the serpent square in the nose. It screeched, pulling back and shutting its eyes in pain. The teenaged half ghost took this opportunity to continue her assault; she sailed up to her opponent and socked the side of its snout.

The creature descended to the ground, emanating a booming thud when it made impact. The young girl zipped down to it---wasting no time---and fired ecto-ray after ecto-ray, blasting its head, neck, body, eyes, and tail, all while it shrieked.

In retaliation, the serpent spat venom in Dani’s direction. Though the peppy half ghost was able to avoid the acidic projectiles, she failed to dodge the giant snake’s tail it came crashing down on her.

“Dani!” Tucker and Sam exclaimed in great concern.

Before they could blink, the white-haired teenager phased through the scaled appendage, rising into the air with a disgruntled look in her face.

“O.K., that really hurt!”

_And I don’t have time for this. I need to find Vlad!_

Baring her teeth, the ghost girl summoned a ball of ecto-energy and launched it, with it separating into two as it careened toward the serpent’s face. Both blasts hit their marks, landing right in the creature’s fiery red orbs.

“I’m not gonna let you get in my way, you overgrown garter snake!”

For indeed, nothing was going to keep her from locating her mentor, or the other things she was looking for.

As it shrieked in pain (and agitation), the young heroine flew back down and delivered a powerful kick to the head of the giant snake, causing it to fly backward. When its head hit the ground again, its eyes slid shut as its tongue hung out its mouth.

“Is it down?” the goth asked from several feet away.

“I think so,” the young half ghost answered, staring at the creature as it lay still.

With that, Sam and Tucker made their way over to their friend, adrenaline still pumping.

“Whoa…that thing nearly got us,” the computer geek breathed as she reached Dani’s side.

“Without the Thermos, I can’t get rid of it, so we have to get out of here quickly.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” the rebel began in an insistent tone. “Let’s go!” 

An aggravated hiss come from behind them, and soon a looming shadow dwarfed theirs on the floor.

“Snake up?” Tucker inquired nervously.

“Snake’s up,” Dani replied.

“So soon?”

“Apparently,” Sam responded.

It screeched at them, hurling droplets of venom upon them. Luckily, much of the volley missed them, but some managed to land on their clothes, burning tiny spots on their shirts.

“GO!” Sam shouted.

Dani turned intangible and grabbed her friends, leaping through the door and just narrowly avoiding the serpent as it dove for them.

Back in the hallway, they heard (and felt) the impact of the creature’s head as it slammed against the wall.

“Holy crap, that was close,” the computer geek breathed.

“ **Way** too close,” the young half ghost concurred, turning corporeal again.

“Well, no time to waste, we need to check the other rooms,” the goth reminded.

They stood up and walked to the door directly across from them, once again hearing the wailing of the disembodied souls as they echoed throughout the corridor. Were they there merely to create a creepy atmosphere, or was it something else? Could these howls be nothing more than an illusion, or were they the voices of the damned?

Or perhaps the voices of the Fright Knight’s victims?

Dani shuddered, realizing she was creeping herself out a bit too much.

Opening the door, the trio was confronted with a very dimly-lit hallway, one with rickety ceiling lamps that flickered, stained white tiled flooring, and chipping wallpaper. This new corridor brought with it a true sense of dread---the kind one feels in their bones. One of the lamps swayed precariously, squeaking as it sluggishly drifted from side to side.

This hall also contained more doors, but these were steel, with barred windows.

“O.K., I vote “ **no** ” on this room,” the techno enthusiast proclaimed.

“We don’t have a choice. What if Vlad’s in here and we miss him?” the young girl refuted, furrowing her brow at her friend.

The other girl groaned, and then the trio stepped into the hall, suddenly feeling a cold chill go up their spines.

There was something about this place that screamed: **turn back now**.

As they ventured down the decrepit passage, tension rose in each of their stomachs. Chain rattles could be heard in the distance, howling winds seeped through the bars on the doors---which upon closer inspection, appeared to be cell doors.

Were they in some kind of prison? No, it seemed worse than that.

Their footsteps echoed, bouncing off the walls in an eerie manner.

“You know, I think the snake was better,” Tucker commented.

“Vlad?! Hello?!” Dani called, using one hand to amplify the sound of her voice.

“Ey yo Vlad!” the computer geek yelled, now using **her** hands as a make-shift mega phone. “You here, dude?!”

Hoarse moans met their calls, making all three of them shiver. They seemed to be coming from behind the numerous cells that populated the hallway.

“O.K.---I’m out!” the techno enthusiast delivered, swiftly turning on the balls of her feet.

“No, wait!” the half ghost heroine said as she reached for Tucker’s shoulders, holding her back. “We can’t go just yet. What if Vlad’s here?”

“He didn’t answer, so I think we can rule this place out,” the other girl reasoned, eyes brimming with fear.

“And besides, we don’t know how far this hall goes,” the goth pointed out.

“I don’t care!” Dani declared, sending a glare at Sam. “This hall could stretch for **miles** , but that would never stop me. I don’t care what I have to go through to reach Vlad---I don’t care where I have to go! Nothing is going to keep me from reaching him!”

At her conviction, the rebel grunted, jealousy and concern molding together in an infuriating ball of emotion. He understood why she felt this way---after all, he would do the same for her if she was the one missing. What stung was her passion, her overwhelming drive to locate the older man.

Why did it have to be **him**?

“It’s my fault this has happened,” the girl lamented, breaking eye contact with Sam and gazing at the dilapidated floor. “I brought that **stupid** sword back with me, not even thinking about the consequences. The one the Fright Knight should be fighting is me, not Vlad---it’s not fair for him to face something **I** caused. He shouldn’t have to endure the punishment that was meant for **me**.”

“Don’t say that!” the goth refuted. “It’s not like you meant for this to happen! How were you supposed to know?”

“Doesn’t matter! Vlad shouldn’t have to deal with **my** mistake, and I have to fix this, even if that means fighting the Fright Knight one on one!”

The moans intensified, as if linked to the ghost girl’s penetrating emotions. All three of the teenagers gave a collected shiver.

“Well, **I** say we get out of here. Anybody second that?” the techno geek proposed.

“I’m not gonna let this place scare me,” Dani proclaimed, standing her ground. “I’m not gonna let the **Fright Knight** scare me. I don’t care what he has to throw at me---I’m not gonna run away. I messed up once, and I won’t let it happen again---I **will** fix this.”

_And nothing is going to get in the way of finding Vlad._

Suddenly, the entire hall began to tremble, accompanied by a low and distant rumble. The lights above the trio started swishing back and forth rather aggressively, as if aboard a rocking sailing ship. They also sparked---bulbs fizzling out and bursting, raining glass down onto the floor. The sound was almost akin to balloons popping.

“What’s happening?!” the computer whiz fretted, clasping her hands over her ears.

The young heroine glanced down the corridor, eyes squinting into the darkness. The rumbling was getting closer and closer, rabidly approaching where they stood.

With the aid of the last surviving lamp (who’s bulb buzzed and rattled) the half ghost could see the first ten feet in front of her, and as she stared, she witnessed the derelict floor crumble away, falling into the abyss.

“RUN!”

The three took off further down the hallway, assaulted by not only the sounds of the disintegrating ground behind them, but also those made by the unseen voices; they screamed, wailed, and growled collectively, created a jarring and frightful cacophony of verbalized suffering.

Blackened arms launched out of the barred windows of the cell doors, reaching out for the retreating teenagers. Tucker shrieked as one thrust out in front of her, yanking the black beanie off her head. She stopped and grabbed her beanie, grappling with the decaying appendage even though she had been thoroughly startled.

“Tucker!” Sam cried, halting and looking over his shoulder.

“It won’t let go!”

“Just leave it, we can’t stop!” the heroine shouted, also ceasing in her sprint.

“No way, man! This was a present from my grandmother!”

The other two ran over to their friend and latched onto her waist, pulling along with her. The collapsing floor advanced toward them, sending a wave of panic through the young half ghost.

Then she slammed her fist down on the thieving hand, causing the owner of it to groan and release the beanie.

“Let’s go!!”

Pulling it back over her head, Tucker raced after Sam and Dani, bolting even further into the shadow-bathed hall.

But the failing floor gained on them still.

“What’ll we do?!” the goth inquired in a panicked tone.

“We can’t keep this up!” the computer whiz pointed out.

The opening licked at their heels, making their hearts pound in their ears.

“Grab hold of me!” the heroine commanded as she grabbed her friends by the arms and propelled herself into the air, soaring at just a foot or two off the ground.

The decaying limbs continued to launch out from the doors, causing Dani to maneuver around them. One came close to snatching the rebel away, but luckily the ghost girl ducked out of the way just in time.

Now the disintegrating floor passed them, allowing the trio to view it in full; the neglected tile deteriorated, descending into the pure blackness.

One of the arms to Dani’s left apprehended her leg, making the girl stop in her tracks. The sudden action surprised the young heroine, causing her to yelp.

She kicked and thrashed, but it wouldn’t give way. With both her hands occupied, the ghost girl was unable to fire any ecto-energy blasts.

Sam joined in, kicking at the disconcerting appendage. He landed a solid hit to the side of the blackened hand, dislodging one of its fingers.

“Ah, gross!” the techno whiz cried in disgust.

If the situation wasn’t so dire, the goth would have been morbidly fascinated.

“Let go!” the teenaged half ghost demanded, yanking her leg so hard she feared, for an instant, that she might’ve pulled a muscle.

Until she remembered that ghosts don’t have muscles.

 The black-clad adolescent kicked again, this time with both feet, and managed to knock all but two fingers from the stubborn hand.

“One more should do it!” he announced.

“Hurry!” Tucker insisted, distress leaking from her tone.

At that, Sam thrust his legs outward once more and successfully removed the remaining digits from the hand, freeing the young heroine.

Without hesitating, the white-haired half ghost resumed her flight down the now near-pitch black passage. A good number of the lamps had died out, with only one in every four or five providing light.

The disturbing sounds of the unseen prisoners persisted, as well as the rumbling of the collapsing floor.  

“Wait Dani, turn around!” the goth advised. “We can get back to the door now!”

“We can’t yet!”

“It looks like this hall goes on forever, anyway!” Tucker argued. “I don’t think Vlad, the Fenton Thermos, or the sword is here!”

“We’ve wasted too much time **already**!” Sam added.

The heroine furrowed her brow for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

_They’re right. At this point, we might as well be back where we started._

“Hold on!”

The two swung around and hugged Dani’s torso, hanging off of her like baby sloths. She was about to loop back around when a white painted door emerged from the darkness.

“Look over there!”

“Is that the way out?” the computer geek asked.

“Is that the door to your room?” the nonconformist inquired.

“Only one way to find out!”

Accelerating toward the door, Dani waited for the absolute right moment and turned intangible, flying through the door and hitting the floor on the other side.

Everything was quiet.

One could hear a pin drop.

No wailing, no screeching, no rumbling.

And no bedroom.

Standing up (since they had all landed on their stomachs), the trio observed the room around them; the walls were white, as was the floor, and nothing but a lone chair sat in the chamber. It was wooden, stiff, and obviously old. Despite there not being a single light fixture in the room, the space was brightly lit, in contrast to the dark corridor.

“ **Now** where are we?” Tucker asked in an aggravated groan.

“There’s no other door in here,” Sam noted as his purple orbs scanned the room. “How do we get out of here?”

“Easy,” the young girl began. “One of the perks of being a half ghost; laws of physics don’t apply.”

She turned incorporeal once again and flew over towards the far wall, but instead of phasing through it, she slammed face first into it.

“Ow!” she exclaimed before falling to the floor.

“Dani, you O.K.?” Tucker asked in concern.

“Yeah, but what the heck?” she answered, rubbing her nose. “Why couldn’t I go through?”

She rose, staring at the ivory wall with bewildered eyes. What was going on? Were her powers on the fritz?

No, they were working just fine. It’s not like she went invisible by accident instead of intangible.

She hadn’t made that mistake in a long time.

So how come her intangibility wasn’t working?

Then a frightening thought hit her: if her abilities were somehow being impaired, then how were they to escape this room?

“Oh no---how am I supposed to get us out of here?? How am I supposed to get the Fenton Thermos and the sword---how am I supposed to get to Vlad?!”

“Dani, calm down!” the goth urged. “I’m sure there’s a way out, we just need to find it.”

“Speak for yourself, Sam,” the techno whiz stated, terror rising in her voice. “We’re trapped!”

“No…NO!” the ghost girl bellowed as she slammed her fists onto the wall.

_I have to get out of here! I need to get back to Vlad! Dammit, why was I so stupid---why **am I** so stupid?! _

Frustration built in Dani’s core, spreading agitated blood through her veins. She started to quiver, mentally berating herself for allowing all this to happen. Not only was the billionaire facing the aftermath of her mindlessness, but now her friends were imprisoned in this room---with **no way out**.

To make matters worse, should the Fright Knight will it he could leave this warped house and wreak absolute havoc on Amity Park!

Tears formed in the girl’s neon green eyes.

_I have to get back to you…Vlad…I’m so sorry…_

She didn’t know what to do. This wasn’t a problem she could punch her way out of, or blast into next Tuesday. In this instance, violence would render her nothing. After all, there wasn’t really anything to punch.

Well, if you discounted the chair in the middle of the room.

As sobs escaped her throat, Dani planted her forehead to the wall, her head in between her fists.

“I swore…I **swore** I would fight this…I wasn’t going to give up…”

“And you can’t now,” the nonconformist stated in a tone that was both encouraging and comforting. “You can **do** this.”

“How, when I can’t even phase outta here?!”

“‘Cause you’re not alone,” Tucker pointed out, planting a fist to her hip. “We’re in this too, ya know?”

“We’ll figure this out together,” the goth said with a reassuring smile.

Dani turned around and gazed at her friends, revelation in her features. They were right---she wasn’t alone, and they had been able to get themselves out of every ghost-related situation they faced thus far, so why should this be any different?

Moreover, she had a job to do, and giving up would mean dishonoring her duty to the town.

_If I gave up here, I’ll be admitting defeat. I can’t do that---I **won’t** do that. I’m better than this; I’m better than whatever the Fright Knight has up his sleeve, I’ve got to remember that. I’ve made it this far, right? _

She surmised that that **had** to count for something. If she remained focused on the goal at hand, then surely, she could overcome any obstacle. The key was to not let her fears interfere with her determination, whether that fear be the inability to escape this room or even failure to reach the older half ghost. Indeed, she needed to stay the course, not allowing her doubts and uncertainties to overcome her resolve.

Giving up meant losing was a guarantee; but trying opened up the possibility of succeeding.

And no matter how small that possibility was, she had to have hope in it.

“You’re right,” Dani began, lifting her head. “I’m sorry.”

“Hey, temporary insanity, dude,” Tucker stated with a shrug. “Happens to the best of us.”

With her determination rekindling in her heart, the young heroine pulled away from the wall, scrutinizing it.

“But still, how are we gonna get outta here if my powers aren’t effective?”

“There always a way out,” Sam maintained, walking over to the empty white surface and running his palm along it. “Always.”

“Wow, since when were you one for optimism?” the computer whiz teased, flashing a sly grin.

“We just need to figure it out,” the goth continued, ignoring Tucker’s comment.

The young half ghost narrowed her eyes in contemplation, staring up the wall and to the ceiling. Was this room a part of the hallway they were just in, or was it a whole new area altogether? Was it connected to anything else?

So far, all the spaces they’d been to had a common theme; they were based on different fears. The first room had a giant snake, obviously referencing Ophidiophobia; the second room was a long, dark, narrow hallway with creepy cells and moaning voices, probably hinting at the fear of the dark and what may reside there. But this room, what was the idea here?

The room was tall and open, as well as bright. It didn’t seem to be referencing Claustrophobia or the fear of the dark.

Perhaps it was Cleithrophobia?

She sauntered over to the far left of the room, surveying the entire space. Nothing about this room was remotely threatening, and there was certainly no sense of dread to be felt in the stomach.

_Of course, that could be because I’m not afraid of being trapped in here. At least, not anymore._

No, what she was **truly** afraid of was failure---failing to stop the Fright Knight, failing to meet her mentor’s expectations, failing to get her friends to safety.

This had been an overarching fear of hers since she first received her ghost powers. The young girl didn’t want to let anyone down or disappoint those who’s opinions mattered most to her.

And though yes, everything she’d seen thus far was unsettling and downright spine chilling, she didn’t feel crippled in any way; the ghost girl didn’t feel completely uncapable of fighting back. Not on the slightest. For indeed, nothing she had faced was enough to render her utterly useless, crippled by fright. And it seemed her friends were the same way. Sure, Tucker had the mini-freak out a little while ago, but ultimately it didn’t prevent her from carrying on.

What was the Fright Knight’s angle? If he was the so-called “spirit of Halloween”, then how come he couldn’t conjure something that would actually stall them?

_If he had put spiders in any one of those other rooms, I probably would have bailed. I can’t stand spiders._

_Although, I’m not the biggest fan of snakes either, but I was able to beat that._

Then she inferred that if she **had** faced spiders, she would’ve fought through them--- **anything** to get to the business tycoon. After all, nothing was going to keep her from him.

Regardless, it still struck the girl as rather odd that the ghostly brawler hadn’t at least tried to target their deepest fears. That would have kept them off his back for a good while, that’s for sure.

But such wasn’t the case.

Why was that?

Then Dani gazed at the chair in the center of the room. Why was it there? What was the purpose of its presence? What sense of unease could it possible provide?

And did it really matter?

Hovering over to the piece of wooden furniture, the white-haired teen tilted her head to the side.

“I wonder what this room is…”

“Huh?” the techno enthusiast uttered from her spot in front of the wall.

“These rooms---all of them---have centered around various fears. I bet the rest of them are like that too.”

“That makes sense,” the nonconformist agreed, bringing a fist to his chin in a thinking pose. “So you’re thinking this room is also connected to a phobia of some kind?”

“Yeah, I just don’t know which one.”

“Hmm…seems kinda empty in here,” the computer geek noted. “Kinda lonely.”

_Lonely…_

“Wait a minute,” Dani started, turning fully to her friends. “Could that be it?”

_Is this room an embodiment of Monophobia?_

“I’m not afraid of being alone,” Sam pointed out, crossing him arms.

“We know **you’re** not, Sam,” Tucker deadpanned.

“But a lot of people are,” Dani explained. “A lot of people our age are.”

_Even me sometimes._

“But I don’t see how figuring out what fear this room has to do with gets us any closer to getting out,” the rebel stated.

“Maybe nothing, but at least the design of the room makes more sense.”

The computer geek crossed her arms as well. “Well, does that help us out? I mean, with the first room, you just kicked that snake’s butt enough for us to get outta there, and with the last room we just ran like hell.”

“Yeah, I’m not seeing a common theme, here,” the goth added.

“Maybe knowing the phobias connected to the rooms isn’t the key to beating them, but it does tell us something: they’re random. If the Fright Knight really wanted to stop us, he’d have created rooms that contained **our** greatest fears, ones that would render us totally helpless.”

“So what’s your point?” Tucker inquired.

“That means that he doesn’t know---or at least doesn’t have the ability to know what scares us.”

Revelation danced across their faces.

“You’re right,” the black-clad teen affirmed. “So he can’t be as powerful as Vlad warned.”

“Or it means he’s lacking what’s necessary to get a hold of that knowledge, and I think I know what that thing is,” the ghost girl proclaimed.

 A jarring boom resounded throughout the chamber, causing all three teenagers to jump. The room began to quake, and then the walls started to move in their direction, with the ceiling deliberately coming down at them.

“Uh no,” the techno geek breathed.

Dani ran to her friends an erected a barrier as small chunks of debris rained down on them.

“What’ll we do now?!” Tucker yelled over the roar of the cascading ceiling and advancing walls.

“I’ll think of something!” the ghost girl declared.

_I can’t phase us out of this place, but there **has** to be a way out! _

This was like one of the scenes from those action movies, only Dani wasn’t a rugged but skilled adventurer in their 40s who was getting to old for this, nor was she Laura Croft.

 “Dani, why don’t you try blasting something?!” Sam suggested.

“What---there’s nothing to blast!”

“Just try anyway!”

The heroine flew out of the barrier and hovered just above it, summoning a ball of ecto-energy in her hand.

“Here goes.”

She tossed it at a random spot on the ceiling. Since it was already crumpling slightly, a large chunk gave way, thereby producing a small opening.

“It worked!”

“Good, now let’s get the bloody hell outta here!” the goth shouted.

The younger half ghost fired a bigger blast of energy at the same spot, opening it up even further. Then she soared back down to her friends, scooped them up under her arms, and sailed up to the hole and cleared it by just a few inches.

Behind them, they heard the boom of the walls and ceiling colliding with each other.

Ahead, and all around them, was blackness.

“Phew, thank Sega was dodged that,” Tucker commented.

“No kidding,” Sam said, releasing a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

“But where are we now?”

“I don’t know…the space in between the rooms, maybe?” the rebel teen guessed. 

“Well, we managed to get out of that last place, so all we need to do is move forward---”

The heroine was cut off when she unexpectedly slammed into something.

After exclaiming in discomfort, she slid onto an invisible floor.

“You O.K.?” Tucker inquired.

“Yep. Yep I’m good,” Dani responded as he rubbed her nose again.

_It’s bound to be bruised, now._

“What happened?” the goth asked.

“I’m not sure…” the ghost girl muttered as she stood up, surveying the black space in from of her. There didn’t seem to be anything there, but when she placed her hand in front of her, she felt a definite wall.

“What in the world?”

She ran her gloved-hand along the unseen surface until she hit a spherical object jetting outward. The peppy teenager clasped the strange object, twisted it a few times. It went with her hand, moving back and forth in quick jerks against her palm.

Realization struck.

“It’s a doorknob.”

She turned the knob all the way, and before her eyes the Fenton Work’s kitchen came into view. Everything was exactly has they had left it; nothing was out of place or missing. In addition, the living room could be seen through the kitchen’s threshold.

The trio filed out of the black space, only for Sam to turn around and see they had just climbed out of a broom closet.

“What the…?”

“What’s up?” Tucker addressed as she looked back at the goth. Dani followed suit.

“It’s closed off now,” he observed. “We just exited a closet.”

“I guess the Fright Knight’s turning this place into a maze,” the computer geek conjected.

“Or some kind of elaborate mouse trap,” he mumbled.

“With us as the mouse,” the half ghost heroine noted before looking into the living room over yonder. With a nod to her friends, she led the party of three into the adjacent room, seeing all their stuff accounted for---the blankets, sweets, and Tucker’s bag were still in the exact same place.

“Look!” the techno enthusiast said with a hint of apprehension as she pointed upstairs.

Or what should have been the upstairs.

The stairs led up into a solid wall, one that blocked off what would be the second story.

“So the Fright Knight must have divided the floors of the house,” the nonconformist put together.

“Looks that way,” the white-haired half ghost affirmed.

“Speaking of creepy dead soldiers,” Tucker began, turquoise eyes scanning the space. “Where **is** the Fright Knight?”

“And Vlad?”

Sam let out an irritated sigh, but offered no other response.

There was no sound here either---no sounds that would indicate a brawl, or otherwise. The purple flames that once licked the walls were gone as well, making the place seem normal again.

But Dani knew they weren’t out of the woods yet.

“Let’s head to the lab,” she recommended. “Maybe we can find something to use there.”

“I thought we were looking for your room?” the techno whiz inquired in confusion.

“I doubt we’ll be able to reach it now. Besides, we’ve already wasted too much time. We can find some other way of dealing with the Fright Knight.”

Her parents had spent years inventing devices that could trap, disable, and incapacitate ghosts. Surely they had something the trio could use against the ghostly brawler.

The teens walked back into the kitchen and approached the stairs to the lab, suddenly hearing the sound of glass breaking, followed up a disgruntled grunt. The three looked at each other and then swiftly descended the steps. Once they entered the lab, the saw the ghost brawler sitting up against the left wall, planted on top a counter and surrounded by shattered beakers.

The young girl immediately looked to her right, seeing her older mentor floating just off the ground, his fist emitting a fuchsia aura.

His expression was resolute, steadfast, with his all red orbs casting a cold gaze.

“Vlad!” the younger half ghost exclaimed with glee, feeling like she could cry.

The tycoon’s head whipped in her direction, and his features bore his surprise---his eyebrows rose and all coldness evaporated from his eyes. 

“Danielle!”

Without hesitating, the ghost girl rocketed toward the billionaire, throwing her arms around his broad form.

“Vlad! I’m so glad I found you! I’m so glad you’re O.K.!” she declared as she buried her face in his chest.

“Danielle…shouldn’t that be my line?” he stated with a slight chuckle, relief pouring into his heart. His little badger was safe.

“I was so worried something would happen to you. You were so concerned about me fighting the Fright Knight, so I assumed he was a big deal, even to **you**. I couldn’t just leave you to deal with him.”

The business mogul hugged her back, holding her gently in his arms with his hand resting on the back of her head.

“I assure you, I was never in any danger. And you shouldn’t have to worry about me; It’s my place to worry about **you** , Danielle, not the other way around. I’m here to teach and protect you.”

Dani looked up at him, neon green eyes glistening with tears.

“Yeah, well, I don’t care.”

“Danielle---”

“You want to be the one to protect me? Then I’m going to be one to protect you.” 

Once again, surprise flashed across the older man’s face.

“Danielle…”

It’s not like he needed protection---he could take care of himself. And he was, after all, the most feared ghost in the Ghost Zone (if you don’t count the Ghost King, anyway). Ghosts would purposely avoid him, and for those that didn’t take to heart the warnings of others, they soon learned, rather painfully, just what it meant to oppose Vlad Plasmius.

But none the less, his heart swelled at his dear one’s assertion. It was clear to him then that whatever feelings she possessed for him, be they respect or romantic, they were just as strong as what he felt for her. The ghost girl was determined to be his equal, and he saw no problem in allowing her to be.

“Danielle, I promise you: I will do whatever I can to make sure you don’t have to worry about me like that again. I will always be by your side, no matter the danger.”

He stroked her hair, petting her like a kitten. His large, warm hand trailed down Dani’s head to her neck, and back up to the top of her head. The sensation gave the girl a chill down her spine, and a sweet smile rose on her face.

Along with a slight blush.

“You’re such a frootloop,” she joked.

“Well, in a world of Cheerios…” the bachelor stated with a tender grin.

When she giggled, he felt his pulse quicken.

“Uh, **hello**? Did you guys forget about something??” Tucker called from across the room, pointing to the now rising Fright Knight. The ghost narrowed his eyes as he stepped onto the floor, summoning fiery blue skulls in his hands.

“Your attempts to defeat me are in vain, halflings. You cannot begin to comprehend the power that stands before you---it’s foolish to persist any further, for your rout is inevitable.”

The peppy heroine turned to the ghostly brawler, letting one arm drop from Vlad’s side, but with her other arm still hugging his back.

“You don’t seem that powerful to me. If you’re as strong as you keep saying you are, then how come those rooms upstairs didn’t stop us?”

“‘Room’s upstairs’?” Plasmius repeated in mild confusion.

The Fright Knight growled, but didn’t make a move.

“You’re the ‘incarnation of terror’, right? Well, nothing you threw at us was particular scary. Why is that?”

“Silence, child!” the ghostly brawler warned, balling his gauntleted hands into fists, the fiery skulls changing to a furious purple.

“Let me guess,” she began, undeterred. “It’s ‘cause you don’t have that sword, the Soul Shrieker---”

“Soul Shredder,” Vlad corrected.

“Soul Shredder!” the girl reiterated.

Sam and Tucker looked lost for a moment, until they remembered what their friend had said back in the empty white room:

“ _Or it means he’s lacking what’s necessary to get a hold of that knowledge, and I think I know what that thing is._ ”

They both glanced at each other, and then back at the scene before them. It all made sense now.

“So that’s it,” the goth started, eyes brimming with revelation. “That’s why he reacted the way he did to having it stolen, ‘cause it gives him more power!”

“It gives him the ability to know what we’re all afraid of!” the computer whiz chimed in.

“Indeed,” the businessman confirmed. “With a single stroke of the Soul Shredder, the Fright Knight forces you to confront your deepest, darkest nightmares.”

“You’ve learned that much then?” the Fright Knight inquired, frustration evident in his tone.

“At first, I wasn’t sure, but when I really thought about it, it made sense. You valued that thing enough to track me down and even try kill all of us, so it had to be more than just some old trinket.”

The older man gazed down at his little badger, beaming with pride.

_How very astute of you, Danielle._

“Even so, you will still fail. Knowing this doesn’t save you,” the ghostly brawler challenged.

“Yeah? Well, I’m definitely not scared of you,” the white-haired half ghost taunted with a raised eyebrow. “And it looks like you don’t even know where your sword is, or you would have gone after it ages ago.”

The billionaire’s brow expressed his astonishment at her comment.

_She’s far brighter than I originally gave her credit for. I won’t be underestimating her again._

The Fright Knight growled again, this time in unbridled rage. He launched his fiery skulls at the two half ghosts, and in response the business mogul held his dear pupil tight and flew into the air, missing the projectiles by a generous margin.

Vlad then manifested a ball of energy in one hand, and as he embraced the ghost girl with his other arm, fired a continuous ray at his opponent. The ghostly solider summoned his diamond-shaped shield again and blocked the attack, using his guard as a chance to advance forward.

But the eccentric bachelor wouldn’t let up.

Despite this, the Fright Knight continued, and when he was almost underneath them, he deflected the beam with a sudden wave of his arm. The fuchsia light flew back and nearly hit the billionaire, if he hadn’t moved out of the way at the last possible second.

The armored ghost soared up toward them, creating a black lance sword. He swung the weapon once it finished materializing, but luckily the older businessman was able to counter it with a conjured weapon of his own: a red broad sword with a bat-shaped pommel, a grip with runes etched into the metal, and a cross guard in the shape of demonic wings.

The two iron armaments clashed, emitting a brash clang. Plasmius bore his fangs while the Fright Knight growled again, only this time it was much lower.

It was actually quite in the interesting scene; with Dani being held by the older man in such a way, it looked like they were a medieval couple, where Vlad was the gallant knight and she the beautiful damsel.

The rebel teen caught the similarities, and thus furrowed his brow.

 Though he wouldn’t have much to be annoyed about, for soon the younger half ghost pulled away from her mentor, landing a swift kick to their opponent’s side, knocking him toward the wall. In retaliation, the ghostly brawler stuck his palm in her direction, sending a barrage of spires at her. She turned intangible and sailing through the deadly projectiles, reaching the Fright Knight in a matter of seconds. The ghost girl yanked the lance out of his grasp and held it to his throat, sporting an impressive glare.

“It’s over, you’ve lost,” she proclaimed as the tycoon joined her and pointed his weapon their adversary as well.

“Indeed, without the Soul Shredder, you are clearly outmatched.”

“Perhaps,” the armored ghost started, looked up at them. “But you seem to forget; this entire dwelling is under my influence. Should I wish it, you would be enduring the greatest horrors to ever be conjured by hell itself.”

“But ya can’t do that without your sword,” the young heroine stressed, tilting her head side to side and forward to emphasize her words.

“No, but reaching it will be no problem, once I implement the proper distraction,” he stated in a cocky tone. If he truly did have a mouth, he would most likely be smirking.

“Wait what?”

Just then, the lab started to shake, rumbling deep within the underground walls. Beakers and test tubes rattled and fell to the floor, shattering into hundreds of pieces as the various unfinished ghost inventions vibrated and gingerly drifted to the edges of the tables.

And then falling over and joining the broken glass.

Tucker and Sam lost their balance and hit the floor as well, yelping and grunting respectively as they felt gravity take them down.

“Guys!” the teenaged heroine called in worry.

“Danielle don’t lose focus! We must stop the Fright Knight before he escapes!” Plasmius ordered as he thrust his sword forward, pinning the ghostly soldier to the wall by the hood of his cape.

Their opponent released a bellowing laugh, sending cold shudders up all four of their spines. The laugh was akin to what one would hear in a vacant mansion---perhaps in an empty gallery or ballroom---as a sense of dread flooded the mind and ate away at the nerves.

As if to taunt the older business mogul, the armored ghost faded into the very wall he was pinned to.

Naturally, this incited irritation in the more experienced half ghost.

“Oh, Fudge buckets!” he shouted, gripping the hilt of his blade.

Dani felt bad for letting the Fright Knight get away, but at the moment she was more concerned about her friends.

Although, once they stared up at her, she knew they were O.K.

“I’m sorry, Vlad. We can catch up to him.”

“We have to hurry. Under no circumstances are we to allow him to obtain that sword,” he insisted, gazing into her eyes.

“Right!” The young girl flew back down to her friends after concurring, taking both of them under her arms again. “Lead the way!”

The billionaire nodded, phasing through the wall, with the girl following suit.

They quickly immerged in the living room, looking around for any sign of the Fright Knight. Unfortunately, there was none to be seen.

The older man glanced about the space, eyes homing in on the couch---or more specifically, the blankets that lay strewn upon it. Though it hadn’t lasted long, Vlad much enjoyed the spontaneous cuddling with his adorable protégé. He could still fell her pressure on his side, as well as her hand on his chest. He smiled, recalling the warmth that was contained in that moment, and not just the physical warmth, but the tender feeling that blossomed in his heart.

What he would do to return to that moment.

He also counted himself lucky, however, that **he himself** hadn’t ruined that perfect scene.

_If I had acted on my libido, everything in that moment would have been sullied, defiled. The purity of our contact was so special all on its own._

He also found himself thanking the Fright Knight in a way, for if he hadn’t appeared, it was entirely possible that Danielle would have noticed his “little issue”.

“Now what?” the computer whiz inquired, wrenching the billionaire from his contented thoughts.

“We need to get upstairs. That’s where the sword is,” Dani stated.

“In your room,” Sam added.

“Exactly.”

“But we’ll have to go back the way we came, and I’m not sure that’s even possible,” Tucker proclaimed.

“How did you get to the lab in the first place?” Vlad asked.

“Through a broom closet,” Dani replied.

He merely rose an eyebrow in response.

“Don’t think about it too hard.”

“There’s got to be another way,” the techno geek began, pacing in front of the TV. “The Fright Knight has one, so we just need to follow him.”

“But how can we catch up to him when we can’t even find him?” the goth refuted, crossing his arms.

“Please, Samuel, one need only have intelligence, and a little bit of power---” the tycoon said confidently as he strolled over to the bottom of the stairs. “---and the path will open up to you.”

Then he blasted the ceiling that the stairs led into, and the entire thing crumbled away, revealing the other half of the house.

“Hmph, more like **ego** and power,” the rebel teen grumbled under his breath.

“You’re kidding…” Tucker muttered in disbelief. “It was **that** easy?!”

“The Fright Knight operates with fear,” Plasmius explained. “And fear turns into every negative emotion imaginable. It creates anger, sadness, **confusion**. Once you’re completely ingulfed in your own fear, you become irrational, and start to overthink things.”

“But we weren’t afraid!”

“Perhaps not, but this house stopped makings sense to you, correct? You assumed that the Fright Knight had changed this house into some sort of rat maze with dead ends and complicated pathways. This led you to start thinking in the abstract, rather than the simple.”

“So, the Fright Knight just kinda banks on people overanalyzing everything in order to stay ahead of the game?” the ghost girl conjected, suddenly feeling incredible stupid herself.

“Indeed, Danielle.”

“Well crud,” she uttered in a mix of irritation and embarrassment.

“In any case, let us get a move on,” Vlad urged as he ushered the three teenagers up the stairs.

Upon reaching the top of the landing, they were greeted by the infinite hallways of doors, a sight the trio hoped never to see again.

They gave a collective groan.

“Now, where is your bedroom, Danielle?” the businessman asked, feeling disappointed that **this** was the instance in which he asked that question.

“I don’t know. Normally, its’s supposed to be right here,” she said as she pointed to the door directly in front of them.

“But that’s just a creepy bathroom,” Tucker chimed in, tilting forward and balancing on her heels. “We’ve been in there before.”

Vlad hummed, stroking his beard with his forefinger and thumb. It seemed imperative that they check all the rooms, which the older man believed the teens were doing prior to them finding him and the ghostly solider. However, time was of the essence. They didn’t have the luxury of inspecting every single room in hopes of randomly coming across Dani’s. Rather, they needed to be clever about this.

They needed to deduce where her room could be.

_It makes sense that the Fright Knight would hide her room in some obscure part of this house in order to prevent us from reaching in. And I have no doubt that most, if not all of these rooms have puzzles and traps of their own, making the search that much more difficult._

Then he paused, revelation dawning his features.

_Hold on…_

_Perhaps…_

He walked over to the door, opening it with a creek, and seeing the aforementioned “creepy bathroom”. He marched inside, much to the bewilderment of the trio.

“Hey, Vlad, we already told you that’s not Dani’s room,” the nonconformist criticized, furrowing his brow. Again.

Dain followed her mentor into the room anyway, earning her a befuddled expression from the goth.

“If he’s going in, it must be for a reason,” she inferred, looking over her shoulder at her friends as she crossed the threshold.

“She’s got a point,” the techno whiz said with a shrug, venturing into the room as well.

With a growl, Sam followed too.

The older half ghost reached the wall across from the door, running his gloved-hand down the chilled tile. He closed his eyes, concentrating a large sum of energy into his right hand. Channeling that much power was risky, as he had learned during the Poindexter incident, but this wouldn’t take that much strength---he was only blowing up a wall.

Fuchsia light traveled across the wall from Vlad’s hand, spreading like blush on a juvenile.

In no time flat, the structure came crashing down, making the room quake.

On the other side was Dani’s room, completely untouched by the supernatural makeover of the Fenton residence.

“No way…It was here the whole time…” the geek muttered, once again, in disbelief.

Vlad opened his eyes and looked over his shoulder. “Remember to not overthink things when facing the Fright Knight.”

“There’s the sword!” the young heroine shouted, pointing at the blade that rested against her closet door.

“Let’s get it!” the rebel yelled.

All four bolted into the room, with Dani straining her arm as she reached out for the Soul Shredder.

But they all stopped in their tracks when purple mist manifested around the blade’s hilt, followed by low laughter.

_The Fright Knight!_

“Dani, go! Get the sword!” Tucker urged.

“Hurry!” Sam insisted.

Without hesitation, the younger half ghost made a b-line for the weapon, leaping into the air and flying toward it. She reached her arm out again, baring her teeth in rushed anticipation.

She grabbed hold of the grip in both hands, but did so just as the armored soldier emerged from the purple smoke, standing tall.

His hand was also on the blade.

“Release the Soul Shredder at once, halfling,” he commanded, ice lacing his words.

“No, **you** leggo!”

Dani yanked the sword toward her, and then the Fright Knight pulled it toward **him** , taking the snow-haired girl as he did.

She yelped, but remained firmly attached to the sword.

Staring into the ectoplasmic green eyes of the ghostly brawler, the young heroine glared, feeling undeterred.

“You don’t scare me. You don’t scare me, and you don’t scare them. Face it, it’s over, you’ve lost!”

“We shall see how quickly you change you tune, child,” the Fright Knight challenged, seizing hold of the girl’s arm, sending waves of electricity through her appendage and over the rest of her delicate form. She screamed, clenching her eyes in pain. The bolts ignited her nerves, creating the sensation of electro-shock throughout her body.

“Dani!” the other teenagers cried.

“Danielle!” Vlad shouted in horror. Instantly, enraged heat coursed through him, turning his blood (if ghosts had any) into burning lava. Red mist leaked from his now glowing eyes, making him resemble something demonic.

Wasting no time, he launched himself at the Fright Knight, swinging his conjured sword at his opponent. In response, the armored ghost released Dani---dropping her to the floor---and blocked the older man’s attack with the Soul Shredder, now that it was completely in his possession.

The bachelor snarled, incensed beyond measure. His little badger was just harmed…

_HOW DARE THIS INSOLENT FOOL!!!_

The business mogul pushed against his adversary, applying as much pressure as possible in an effort of force his hand. Vlad was fully intent on driving him into the dust for what he had just done to his dearest one.

“Dani!” Sam called again, racing over to his friend. She heard him and grunted, sitting up and rubbing the back of her head. 

“Sam, go get the Thermos! Don’t worry about me!” she instructed, pointing to her bedside table. “Hurry!”

Doing as he was told, the goth ran to the Fenton Thermos, grabbing it and booking it back to Dani’s side.

“I thought Vlad said the Thermos wouldn’t work on him?” Tucker asked when she reached the ghost girl, just seconds after Sam.

“We have to give it a try,” Dani stated with a determined visage. “This is gone on long enough.”

“I agree,” the rebel concurred, handing her the cylindrical device. “Go get ‘um.”

After nodding in resolution, the young heroine flew over to the dueling ghosts, both of whom were giving it their all. Taking advantage of the fact that the Fright Knight wasn’t looking at her, she uncapped the Thermos as she drew nearer.

“Sayonara, jerkwad!”

But nothing happened.

No blue funnel. No powerful suction.

Not even a fizzle.

“What the---?”

Suddenly the Fright Knight turned to her, swinging his blade down as if to slice her. Luckily, she narrowly avoided the attack with a swift dodge to the left.

“Danielle, stay out of this!” the older half ghost demanded, thrusting his weapon forward only for his enemy to counter it. “I told you that the Fenton Thermos was useless! With a single strike of the Soul Shredder, you’ll be subjected to your greatest fears!”

“Well I couldn’t just do nothing!”

There had to be a way to get rid of the armored ghost. But if the Thermos was ineffective, then how were they to get him back into the Ghost Zone?

_How were those other ghosts able to do it---the ones Vlad mentioned earlier, the ones who sealed the Fright Knight away?_

_Come on Fenton, **think**! _

Vlad most likely knew the answer, seeing as he knew so much about the Fright Knight.

“How can we beat him, then?” she asked above the clashing blades.

“We need to get him back into the Ghost Zone---into the item he was originally sealed in!”

The ghostly soldier pushed with every ounce of his strength, forcing the tycoon to leap backward and out of the way.

“It is fruitless, halflings. You do not possess the power to defeat me. Those who were responsible for overthrowing me and my lord have long since expired from our worlds, bested, in the end, by his power. If they could not withstand our might, then your imprudent beings shall surely perish without fail.”

“You can’t scare us into giving up, Fright Knight! I don’t care what you have to say---you’re going back into that pumpkin even if I have drag you back into the Ghost Zone myself!” Dani decreed.

“Not by yourself, Dani,” Tucker commented from her spot next to Sam. “We’re in this together! All four of us!”

“Damn straight!” the goth chimed in, wearing a strongminded expression.

“Ha! What could a couple of pathetic mortals hope to accomplish?” the armored ghost taunted, eyes curving as if he were smiling in an amused manner.

“You’d be surprised,” Sam said with a smirk. “We mortals are pretty stubborn.”

“Yeah! We don’t give up, even when the going gets tough!” the computer whiz proclaimed.

“But for how long can you maintain your courage? Your claim is but a loose one; for in the end, humans are but frail and pitiful creatures.”

“Enough of this,” the business mogul stated with vexation in his tone, and then threw himself into the air and flew at his opponent. “I grow tired of your presence!”

The Fright Knight sighed. “So, it appears you require proof, then?”

As Vlad approached, the ghostly brawler first brandished his fearsome sword, then brought it up over his head before swinging it toward his target.

“Vlad!!” Dani screamed, zipping over to him with speed the devil would be envious of.

She shoved him out of the way as the blade came down, and it cut into her side.

“Dani!!!” Tucker and Sam cried in horror, eyes wide and hearts pounding in immense panic.

The older man’s features sported great alarm as he watched his protégé descend to the floor.

“DANIELLE!!”

 

**********

 

Darkness.

Pure, unadulterated darkness.

An all-consuming darkness surrounded the half ghost heroine, canceling out any source of light or sound.

It was quiet.

Still.

But empty. Deeply lonely.

And cold.

The ghost-powered youth opened her eyes, greeting this darkness with unease in those neon green orbs.

“Hello?”

Naturally, there was no answer.

Nothing could be seen for miles and miles---there was nothing **present** for miles and miles.

It was as if she was in a void, or some type of vacuum. Never before had she seen such abandon, not even in her greatest nightmares. She found herself recalling the cloak of shadow that was present in her dreams during the Spectra incident, however **this** darkness was more than a simple presence; this blackness submerged her and everything around her, if indeed, there was anything around her to begin with.

Hadn’t she just been in her room?

Maybe this darkness was engulfing that?

“Vlad? Sam? Tucker?”

Once again, she was met with silence.

“What the heck? Where am I?”

The young girl stood and hovered just an inch or so off the ground. Then she floated in what she hoped was the right direction to leave this place.

“Vlad? Hello, are you there?”

As the void offered yet another silent response, Dani felt a sense of dread building in her stomach.

“Is anyone there? Hello??”

Suddenly, before her eyes, the eccentric bachelor appeared in front of her---a few hundred feet away, in fact. His back was to her, with his long silver hair draping down his back in a graceful ponytail. His arms were clasped behind his back as well, giving him his usual aura of authority and refinement.

“Thank God, Vlad! I was so worried there for a minute!” she sighed in relief as she flew over to him.

However, as soon as he appeared, he vanished, like a carefree wind; his broad form blew away like it was made of mist or fog.

“Vlad, wait!”

Abruptly, the darkness was gone. As if disappearing along with the image of her mentor, the all-encompassing black poofed away, as if it was never there.

Though the sight that meet her eyes made her wish the darkness was still present.

Fenton Works lied in ruins, with the building’s second floor decorating the entire block. The trademark sign that was usually attached to the house also lay about the ground, fragmented and dull, giving off no light whatsoever.

In addition, the entire neighborhood looked like a tornado had come through, as everything was completely destroyed.

“What…what happened?” the girl asked no one in particular, eyes wide with disbelief and rising panic. Wasn’t she just at the house? She was facing the Fright Knight in her room, along with her Vlad and her friends…

“Sam! Tucker!” she shouted, combing the area for any sign of her dearest companions. “Where are you??”

The teenaged heroine sailed to her house, phasing through the front door. The living was in completely disarray.

Scratch that---there **was** no living room anymore.

The couch was the only thing that remained somewhat intact, but even putting it like that was being generous. The purple cushions were covering in soot and dust, no doubt from the debris from when the house came down. It was also missing a large chunk of it right side, and stuffing was pouring out of the arm, back, and base.

Although, it wasn’t so much the state of the furniture that greatly unnerved and dismayed the young girl; the couch may have been in bad shape, but it was the sight of the chard, dusty, moth-eaten blankets that truly pierced her heart.

As in, a very sharp spear had stabbed her vital organ.

She leaned down and picked up the red blanket, massive concern welling in her mind.

“What’s going on? Where is everyone---and what happened to the town?”

_Did the Fright Knight escape?_

“No way. We were just fighting him! I think I was hit by his sword, so maybe I’m…maybe I’m confronting my deepest fears?”

One thing was certain: she was definitely **afraid**.

If she was indeed ensnared in a trap, what was happening back in her room? Were Sam and Tucker doing alright? Was Vlad trying to save them?

“I’ve got to get back to them,” she reasoned, setting the blanket back down and soaring back outside.

She had to find a way back into her bedroom, and if this was just a vision or hallucination, then she had to wake herself up.

Or if this was just like the rooms upstairs, all she had to do was find the way out.

Given that the Fright Knight had struck her with the Soul Shredder, the teenager doubted that the latter was the case.

“I can’t give in to fear,” she told herself. “I know this isn’t real. Amity Park is just fine, and nothing has been destroyed.

Then she heard a moan.

The snow-haired half ghost looked down and saw the computer whiz pinned under a pile of rubble.

“Tucker!” she shouted, quickly zipping down to her friend’s side. “Tucker! Are you---”

_Wait, this is just an illusion. This isn’t real. Tucker’s fine, she---_

“D…Dani…?” the techno enthusiast mumbled, slowly turning her head in the heroine’s direction. Her face was cut in several places, with trails of blood trickling down her youthful cheeks. One of her eyes was swollen and bruised, and both her arms stuck out from her sides, exposing her lacerated palms and fingertips. Had she tried to wrench herself out from under the wreckage?

“Tuck?”

She grunted. “Is that you?”

“Yeah, it’s me. What…What’s---”

“Why?” the geek asked hoarsely.

“Huh?”

“Why did you let this happen? **How** could you let this happen?”

“What?”

The other girl opened her eyes, but they were void of any gaiety or light. “How could you?”

“Tucker, I don’t---”

“How could you let them do this, Dani? Why couldn’t you stop them?”

All at once, Dani knew what Tucker was talking about.

“I didn’t---I mean---they haven’t done anything----I mean---the ghosts couldn’t have---”

Bloody tears ran down the computer geek’s face, streaking her already stained cheek with more red.

“We trusted you…to take care of the city…to look after all of us…but you…you **failed**.”

 ** _YOU FAILED_**.

“No! No, I couldn’t have---we were just in---that can’t be---”

Suddenly, the other teenager’s eyelids slid shut again, her mouth falling open.

“T-Tuck?”

No response.

“Tucker?!”

An aggressive gust of wind blew passed, flapping Dani’s white hair and causing dust to drift across the ground. The ghost girl shut her eyes as well, as the dust was starting to irritate them.

Had she truly done it? Had she failed Amity Park? Was Tucker hurt---or **worse** \---because of her?

Had the Fright Knight escaped after all?

Had **all** the ghosts escaped?

“No! It just can’t---”

The wind died down, freeing the 16-year-old to open her eyes once again, but she noticed that to her left lay another body, one dressed all in black.

“Sam!!”

She rushed over to her other best friend, seeing him limp against the pavement. His eyes were also closed, and unlike Tucker, he was lying in his stomach. Expect he too was covered in scratches and deep gashes, and also had a trickle of red coming from his mouth.

“Sam, no! Not you too!”

Wasn’t this supposed to be fake? Then why did it seem all too real? The wind felt real, the dirt-filled air smelled real, and her friends even **looked** real.

Tucker had **sounded** real too.

“Sam! Sam, get up! Tucker’s in trouble, and hurt really bad! I don’t know if she’s alive, but we have to help her!”

Nothing.

“Sam, please! Open your eyes!” Dani begged, tears welling in her green orbs. She started shaking him then, placing her hands to his back and pushing his lanky form back and forth.

He was cold.

Dani’s eyes went even wider in terror, a single tear cascading down her pale cheek.

“No…this…no……NO!”

She launched into a standing up position, bring her hands into her chest and clutching the fabric of her jumpsuit in tight fists.

“This can’t be---It just **can’t**!!”

Her head whipped around, observing the desolation around her. Were her friends truly dead? Was it really all her fault? What about everyone else---her dad, her mom, Jazz, her classmates, her neighbors---what happened to them?

Were they all dead too?

“N-no…”

**_YOU FAILED_ ** _._

“NO!!”

Then another question careened into her mind: What about Vlad?

“Vlad?! Vlad, where are you?!”

She’d seen him just before all this, so where was he now? Was he hurt, buried under a pile of debris? Was he lying on the ground somewhere nearby?

“Vlad!! Vlad, can you hear me?! Answer me!!”

If anything happened to him---if something **had** happened to him…

“Vlad, please!! Where are you, I need you!!”

Sailing down the street, with tears gushing from her orbs and muddling her vision, the younger half ghost attempted to locate the man she loved, who she had now been separated from twice today.

“Vlad!!”

As she approached a group of mangled cars littering the street, the once-peppy teenager saw the form of a man standing in the middle of the road, his back to her. Even through a watery gaze she could tell who it was.

“Vlad!” she cried in reprieve, mentally thinking God he appeared to be unharmed.

As she neared, overwhelming, indescribable relief washed over her in 20-foot waves. At least he was O.K., and he could help her sort out this mess, and maybe even save Sam and Tucker.

Hopefully.

The older man turned around slowly, and all relief and joy fled Dani’s features.

He was impaled by the lancer she had discarded back in the lab.

Blood dripped from his mouth, and pooled at his chest, where the weapon went through his body. His navy orbs were dull and listless, lacking any kind of life in them.

Much like Tucker’s eyes.

Before she could reach him, he fell to the hard, unforgiving cement, emitting a sickening thud upon hitting the ground.

“VLAD!!!” 


	4. Chapter 4

“Dani!!!” Sam and Tucker screamed as the ghost girl hit the floor, eyes clouded. Her mouth hung open slightly, making her resemble a soulless doll. Twin white rings appeared at her torso, changing her back into her human form.

Both the rebel and the computer geek sprinted over to their friend, viewing the lifeless expression on her face, but seeing nary a mark on her. The Fright Knight’s blade had indeed cut her, but it did not leave behind an injury.

This was, of course, because the Soul Shredder does not injury one in the physical sense.

“Dani! Dani, can you hear me?! Snap out of it!” the goth cried, sliding on his knees once he reached her side. In his panic, he didn’t realize that he’d scratched one of his knees on a loose slinter that was jetting out from the floor.

“Oh man, Dani! Come on dude! Wake up!” the techno whiz beseeched, shaking the young girl by her shoulder.

She did not respond.

“Dani, get a hold of yourself!”

“Dani!”

The ghostly brawler loomed over the two teenagers, amusement clear in his tone: “Now do you see? Mortals are weak, hapless, naïve. With your ally unable to assist you, you regress to your true forms; and she, a mere **halfling** , could not withstand the will of my sword.”

Sam glared up at the armored ghost with intense eyes. “You’re going to pay for this!” he declared with a fiery conviction.

“And who, pray tell, is going to take revenge upon me? Who is worthy?”

Out of the corner of his eye, the Fright Knight noticed a red light surging behind him, and at the same time felt a sudden (and powerful) gust of wind emanate from out of nowhere. He turned around, seeing Vlad Plasmius emitting this light---like an aura, it danced and swayed in a similar fashion to an open flame. His red orbs flashed the same shade, glowing like two bloody suns. All the while, the older man clenched the hilt of his blade, holding it so tightly you’d think he was about to snap it like a twig. He also bore his fangs, which seemed to be growing.

Tearing sounds could be heard as razor-like claws inched out from his gloves, ripping through the fabric like creeping bamboo through soil.

The tycoon’s hair started to grow, falling out of its normal shape and slowly curling, adopting a disheveled, tousled look. Soon, it reached the small of his back, with portions of it draping over his broad shoulders.

He also could no longer close his mouth all the way, for his fangs had grown too long to fit in his mouth.

“Holy…” Tucker muttered in shock and awe.

The older half ghost snarled, his aura rising in tow. His gaze was prevailing, penetrating, beastly. He mirrored a rapid dog readying for an attack, his chest puffing in an out as he took ungraceful breaths.

Then he charged at the Fright Knight, brandishing his infallible sword and crashing it against the Soul Shredder. In response, the armored ghost gave a grunt, signaling both his surprise and his struggle to keep the enraged billionaire back.

Vlad’s mind held no coherent thought; no organized ideas or plans. There was only anger, incensed passion, **revenge**.

Every fiber in his being cried for vengeance, demanded blood. This contemptable, vile, **loathsome** thing had had the **gal** to harm his little badger--- **his** Danielle. To injure her in such a way---to threaten her life and risk his losing her--- it ignited the inferno in his very soul, bidding him to respond in kind.

Though he usually thought out his attacks, surveying his opponent’s moves and finding a weakness to exploit, in this instance his actions had no logical pattern. He was erratic and unpredictable, swinging his conjured weapon almost like a club.

And yet, this method of lacking a method was proving quite effective.

Vlad was so fast, the Fright Knight hadn’t the time to anticipate his next move. In fact, he was barely even able to counter the fuming bachelor’s blows.

One stroke lashed his breastplate, and another severed the top of his hood from the rest (although the strike would have taken his head if he hadn’t ducked at the right moment).

With a growl, Vlad thrust his sword forward, causing the Fright Knight to jump. He leaped backward, sailing over the trio and landing beside Dani’s bedside table. But of course, the business mogul wasted no time; he flew at his adversary, all reason gone from his sub conscious.

“What the heck is going on with Vlad? He’s…he’s transforming or something…” Tucker observed.

“Who cares about that? Dani’s in trouble!” Sam refuted, scowling at his friend’s response without looking at her. “We need to snap her out of this!”

“I don’t know if we can,” the techno geek began, worry lacing her every word. “If she’s facing her deepest darkest fears, then maybe she can’t come back until she beaten them.”

“ **If** she beats them at all…” the goth mumbled, eyes fraught with unrest.

The clash of metal on metal grabbed their attentions, and both teens saw Vlad forcing the ghostly brawler to the floor, pushing down and causing the ghost to bend at an unnatural angle.

Or at least, it would be for a human.

As the older half ghost yelled in great discontent, his aura rose even more, displaying his level of power for all eyes to see.

This prompted the Fright Knight to exert his own, therefore using more of his own strength.

Which was something he hadn’t had to do since he faced the ones who ended up defeating his king and sealing them both away.

Purple light shot out from the ghostly soldier, reaching the height of Vlad’s. The two auras rose and fell, each looking like they were trying to one-up the other. As the billionaire and the ghostly soldier grappled, with their respective energies intensifying, the entire room dropped in temperature and became bathed in red and purple light.

Tucker looked back at her friend, fret welling up in her chest and throat.

“Come on Dani, you can fight this,” she encouraged in a quiet voice. “You’re the ghost girl! You can handle this!”

“You have to resist it, Dani. We need you,” Sam urged. “I need you.”

The businessman swung his blade across the Fright Knight’s torso again, diagonally cutting into his now lashed breastplate; only this time, half of his right besagues fell off and hit the ground, emitting a sharp clang as it struck the hardwood.

Underneath his armor was revealed to be nothing---no skin, no bones, or even some kind of entity.

Only nothing.

None the less, it was clear that the ghostly brawler was displeased by this deed, as he roared to the heavens and shoved the Soul Shredder through the older tycoon.

At the sound of the clang, Tucker and Sam had turned back to the skirmish once again, but now their faces reflected what can only be described as pure terror.

“Vlad!!” the computer whiz screamed.

The man in question glanced down at the sword impaling his mid-section. His burning orbs stared at the unnatural sight, neither expressing panic or irritation.

Instead, he merely observed this deeply alarming scene as if it was no different than watching a raindrop slide down a window pane.

The Fright Knight bellowed with laughter. “Surely **now** you must see how futile your efforts are? You are not equal to the great power of---”

The armored ghost was interrupted, cut off by a swift strike to the head, severing his head from his ectoplasmic body.

The head bounced to the closet door---where it smacked into the blue-painted door and stopped. His green eyes, wide with astonishment, reflected also great confusion and perplexity.

“How…how could you have landed another blow?” he asked in great disbelief. “Why are you not contending with your greatest fears?”

Without providing a response, the billionaire reached down and tore the sword from his person, tossing it passed the trio and into the wall on the other side of the room. He then proceeded to lacerate the Fright Knight’s body, ripping it to shreds with his own conjured blade.

It was like a wolf attacking a knap snack containing a hamster.

As he attacked, the red in his eyes receded, being consumed by black, which soon replaced the scarlet color almost entirely, save for small circular pupils in the center of his ominous orbs.

“Whoa Vlad, stop! I think you got ‘em!” the techno enthusiast stated with urgency. What was happening to the older man?

He craned his head to look at them, and his eyes sent shivers down their spines, chilling their teenaged bodies even more.

In short, he was **terrifying**.

The half ghost emitted a guttural growl, but didn’t make a move to hurt them. Rather, he watched them with those eyes, examining their fragile forms for any sign of harm.

At least, that’s what the geek was hoping. To be frank, it looked more like he was just **staring** at them.

And he wasn’t blinking either, which didn’t help.

“Vlad..?” Tucker addressed, standing up on shaking legs.

“Tucker, what are doing? Don’t provoke him!” Sam whispered yelled.

“I’m not!” she replied at a similar volume. “I just want to see if he’s O.K.”

“Tucker!”

“Just stay here with Dani.”

“Tucker!!”

Not heeding her friend’s desperate words, the other girl approached the beastly billionaire, caution in her step. Her heart pounded in her ears and anxiety swam in her gut. Sweat pooled in her palms, which she held up in defense, demonstrating she was not a threat.

“Vlad?”

He did not move, nor did he reply. It was as if he wasn’t even looking at her at all---like he was looking right through her.

“Dude? It’s over, the Fright Knight’s down…you can stop now…”

She was a couple feet away from him when he cocked his head, startling her. She gulped, but continued to advance.

“Tucker, get back here!” Sam implored.

The computer geek stopped a foot away, watching the tycoon carefully. With a shaky breath she addressed him again: “You did it, you beat him,” she began, reaching a hand out to him. “So you can put that creepy face away, cause no offense, it’s kinda…ya know…utterly horrifying.”

The older businessman’s pupils trailed down to the hand extended to him, and his lips parted, but before he could say anything, purple flames surged up the walls of the room, completely overwhelming the red light and bathing all of the room in purple.

“ **YOU HAVE NOT WON, SIMPLETONS! NOW FEEL THE WRATH OF TRUE FRIGHT!!!** ”

“Oh no!” the goth cried, throwing himself over Dani to shield her.

_Come on Dani, wake up!!!_

The severed head flew into the air and wailed, creating a cacophony that was akin to the one in the prison-like hall from earlier---loud, granting, chill-inducing.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, blackened limbs emerged from the floor, ceiling, walls, even the Fright Knight’s head and body. Tucker screamed, but before the hands at her feet could drag her to the floor, Plasmius flew forward and pulled her into him, holding her securely with his arm.

When he reached Sam and Dani, he released the computer geek and erected a red barrier to protect them. Then he soared back to the head of the ghostly soldier with nary a word to either the goth or the geek.

The bachelor began slashing at the head, but it vanished in a puff of purple smoke, and reappeared in another corner of the room, still emitting its terrible calls.

“What do we do now?!” the techno geek asked in desperation.

“I don’t know…” Sam confessed, looking into the clouded blue eyes of his dear friend.

_Dani, we need you back. Please, please fight this! Don’t give in to fear!!_

 

************

 

Gut-wrenching sobs escaped her throat as she kneeled next to the lifeless business mogul, her pink cheeks becoming stained with liquid sorrow. The young girl’s heart felt like it was being torn to pieces, causing a painful ache in her chest. She felt like she’d lost a part of herself; it was as if she had a portion of her very being ripped out of her so callously. She had lost something to vital, so important, that it felt behind an empty, hollow husk.

As she cried into the hands, dampening her palms with tears, Dani’s brain echoed with memories of her beloved---the things he said to her, the things he did to help her, his enchanting smile, the way he smelled, his touch…

But now all of that was gone forever.

_Why?! Why did this have to happen?! How could I let the Fright Knight win?!_

_He’s gone! They’re **all** gone! _

_And it’s my fault!_

**_YOU FAILED_**.

She screamed to the heavens, bringing her wet hands away from her grief-stricken face and balling them into fists. Nothing was worth it anymore. Nothing mattered.

She lost.

And her loss caused the devastation of the town.

As well as the deaths of the people she loved.

“No! W-why----h-how c-could I?!?!”

She glanced back down at the billionaire, taking in his grievous, life ending injury as if she had been on the one to inflict it.

“I-I-I’m s-sorry! I-I didn’t----I-I couldn’t---!”

Trembling hands reached down to cup Vlad’s cold cheeks. “I-I’m s-so sorry…I…I-I n-never w-wanted you t-to g-get hurt…I n-never w-wanted…”

The anguishing teen pulled the man into herself, embracing his head and feeling the satiny texture of his hair against her own cheek as well as her palms.

“I-I w-wanted t-to t-tell you s-something, something I-I n-never i-intended t-to t-tell you but n-now i-it’s t-too late…” she whispered in a quivering voice. “I-I…I-I love you…”

More tears flowed from her mournful eyes. “Please…p-please d-don’t leave me alone…”

Hadn’t they been cuddling a few hours ago on the couch? Weren’t they enjoying a movie together under a warm blanket and snuggling close? Hadn’t her greatest worry until now been rejection should the eccentric bachelor learn of her feelings for him?

Well, now that hardly even mattered. Now, he would **never** know.

“P-please…” she besought the vacant Vlad Masters.

Never again would she train with him, never again would she converse with him, never again would they share a meal that he prepared.

Never again would she get to hear his praises or be in his presence.

Fury was out of the question, retaliation was beyond her. No, there was only despair, and the lure of the sweet, permanent release it offered. But was she even strong enough to commit such an act?

But what did she have left to lose? Amity Park was in ruins, her family had undoubtedly faced the same fate as her friends, and the man she loved---more than her own life---was permanently gone from this world. And since he was a half ghost, it was unlikely that he was in the Ghost Zone.

On the other hand, this is what her mentor would want? Wouldn’t he want her to live on and avenge herself as well as the town?

Or was he waiting for her?

The young half ghost stroked his silver tresses while her tears continued to fall. She didn’t know what to do anymore. Without realizing it, she had become so dependent on the older tycoon. Her heart was connected to him, but with him gone, that connection snapped.

How was she to move on from this? How could she be expected to??

He was her One and Only.

There was no moving on.

“I-I can’t…There’s nothing…there’s no point anymore…”

She clenched her pained eyes, feeling hopelessness devour her soul.

“P-please…s-someone…help me…”

 

***********

 

The enraged businessman slashed a group of decaying arms jetting out from the ceiling. Unfortunately, these limbs appeared to be eerily similar to the Hydra; when one arm was cut down, several more replaced it.

Vexation growing, Vlad yelled and lashed out at the body of the Fright Knight, slicing it horizontally across its abdomen. The blackened arms that grew from the neck reached out in an attempt to grab at the older billionaire, but he was too fast.

He flew backward, only to return with a vengeance.

Surely destroying the body was the key to ending this battle?

Somehow, something about this assumption didn’t make sense.

True, Vlad was consumed with rage, but now he was able to collect his thoughts.

Somewhat.

Simply attacking the Fright Knight would yield no result. There was something else he needed to do. Maybe he needed to trap the ghost somewhere?

That sounded familiar.

As he took another swing at the armored body, the wails of the detached head caught his attention. Though he didn’t turn around to regard it, it was now present in his mind.

Goodness was it annoying.

“Vlad!” a voice called from below him. It was feminine.

His gaze shifted to his bottom left, seeing Tucker Foley looking up at him.

“Don’t we need to seal the Fright Knight away or something?”

Seal?

Yes, that also sounded familiar.

If fury-clogged memory served, the Fright Knight had been sealed in an enchanted pumpkin after the Ghost King was overthrown. However, that gourd was far out of their reach. The only solution would be so seal him inside another object, one that was just as powerful as the pumpkin.

But where could they find an object like that?

Suddenly, the limbs from the armored ghost’s body stretched out from the neck and seized the older half ghost with vice-like grips. He thrashed, struggled, and tried to slice the blackened arms with his sword, but to no avail.

“Vlad!” the computer geek exclaimed.

Then the older man had an odd thought: wasn’t it strange for him to be confined in such a manner? Didn’t he have the power to escape any hold?

As revelation took hold, he turned intangible and flew out of the arms’ constrictive grasp, earning him a frustrated growl from the owner of the uncanny body. So Vlad glanced back to the head---still emitting that god-awful wailing---but noticed that it was void of disturbing appendages.

“ **HOW ARE YOU ABLE TO RESIST ME, HALFLING? YOU SHOULD BE BESEECHING ME TO END YOUR PATHETIC EXISTENCE---YOU SHOULD BE SUFFERING THE GREAT TERRORS YOU KEEP LOCKED AWAY!** ”

For once, the capability of speech had returned to him, for throughout this entire altercation, he found he hadn’t had the will to speak: “ **It’s because…Fright Knight…I’m currently facing it…** ” he struggled to say before indicating his point with a turn of his head. When the Fright Knight followed the businessman’s gaze, he found the trio; he found Dani.

“ **I SEE, HALFLING. SO YOU KNOW THE WHOLE TRUTH, DO YOU?** ”

“‘Whole truth’?” Tucker repeated, concern in her tone.

“What does that mean?” Sam questioned with urgency and concern of his own.

“ **THE SOUL SHREDDER SUBJECTS WHOEVER I WISH TO THEIR GREATEST NIGHTMARES, AND IN THEIR FEAR AND DESPAIR, THEY SUMBIT TO DEATH.** ”

“Death?!” they both cried in unison, terror evident in their tones.

“ **That is…** ” Vlad began, still with some difficulty. “ **If she gives in…Danielle is…much stronger than anyone I know…even me…Her spirit is enduring…she can make it through…** ”

“ **BUT DO YOU NOT FEAR HER DEMISE? DO YOU NOT HAVE FAITH IN THE LITTLE HALFLING AFTER ALL**?”

“ **I do…I do fear for her…I…I don’t want to lose her…** ”

Sam’s expression hardened for a moment before relaxing, empathy flashing in his purple orbs.

“ **However, do not make the mistake of underestimating her…Danielle is no weak child…she’s…she’s strong enough to fight your hallucinations…I know…I believe in her**!”

 

*********

 

Dani stared at the sky, eyes wide in a mix of astonishment, confusion, and---dare she say it---hope.

“V-Vlad?”

She heard his voice. She heard it, though distant as it was, penetrating the thick dust that coated the air. He said she was strong, he said she was enduring, he said he believed in her.

Was it real? Had she truly heard the voice of the man she loved, or had she gone mad?

Had grief and sorrow overtaken her to the point of insanity?

But hadn’t he also said “hallucination”? What did that mean? Was none of this real? Was Vlad **not** dead at her lap? Were her friends both O.K. and still among the living?

If that was the case, then why was she sitting there doing nothing? If her loved ones were still in danger, then it was time to get back into the fray and end this once and for all!

The ghost girl glanced at the lifeless face of the billionaire, hoping that this wasn’t awaiting her back in her bedroom. Then she stood up, but not before gently resting Vlad’s head on the concrete.

“I’m sorry,” she said, sniffing. “I promise I won’t let this happen to you ever again.”

With a determined visage, she rocketed into the grey firmament, leaving the devastated town behind her.

“I won’t let this happen, not ever,” she vowed to herself, soaring higher and higher. “No matter what, I’m **not** going to give up, I swear it!”

As a powerful squall tried to stop her, she pushed through it, shutting her eyes from the force of the wind.

“I’m never going to let any ghost destroy my town! I’m going to protect them--- **all** of them, including Vlad!”

Suddenly, she felt a cold surface under her cheek, and a pressure in her head. Her body felt heavy, as if it hadn’t moved in a while. But how was this? Wasn’t she just flying in the air?

Dani slowly opened her eyes, realizing just how heavy **they** felt. Though her vision was somewhat blurry, she could make out the shapes of two beings, one reaching out to the other, trapping the other in its grip. She also noticed a much smaller shape in the corner of the room, floating at level with the other two.

“Vlad?” she called hoarsely, her voice barely above a whisper.

Both Tucker and Sam whipped their heads in the young girl’s direction, faces lighting up when they realized she was conscious.

“Dani!” they exclaimed in glee and relief, both hugging their dear friend in warm arms.

“Thank God you’re O.K.! We were so worried about you!” the rebel said, indescribably happy.

“I’m so glad you’re back!” the techno whiz stated with just as much joy.

“Tucker…Sam…I’m sorry…I…” Tears welled up in her baby blues, overjoyed and relieved that it all, had indeed, been a hallucination.

_Thank God it wasn’t real. I never want to see that again, not even falsely._

Both friends pulled away and the young heroine sat up, blinking rapidly to restore her vision.

“What’s going on?” she asked. “Are we still…?”

“Yeah, Vlad created a shield for us, so we’re fine. But he’s still out there fighting the Fright Knight,” the geek explained.

“We need to seal him away, he’s just too powerful,” the nonconformist reminded. “Vlad’s not able to beat him.”

“But how? We don’t have that pumpkin or whatever it was.”

“Maybe we don’t need to seal him,” the ghost girl suggested, rubbing away the last of the blurred vision. “If we can weaken him enough, I can suck him inside the Thermos.”

“Well good luck with that,” Tucker said dismissively. “Vlad’s been cuttin’ him up since you blacked out, and the guy’s still kickin’!”

“If the Fright Knight’s having to put up this much of a fight, then it’s obvious he’s on the fence. He’s afraid of losing, and I beat he thinks he’s in some serious danger right now.”

“Or maybe he’s just pissed?” the goth surmised with a raised eyebrow.

“I’m telling you, he’s losing strength. Vlad’s really giving him a run for his money, and I bet the Fright Knight hasn’t had to deal with an opponent like this since he was sealed away all those years ago.”

“I guess,” Tucker said, glancing over at the confined billionaire. “But what about now? Seems like his going pretty well. This is the second time he’s been restrained like that.”

“Yeah, but that ends now,” Dani declared, transforming back into her ghost form. “Versus two half ghosts, he doesn’t stand a chance.”

Then she took off through the barrier, sailing up to her mentor.

_Whoa…what happened to him? Why does he look so creepy?_

In the end, she was just glad he was alive. A creepy Vlad was infinitely better than a dead one.

She called out his name after she summoned a ball of ecto-energy. When he looked her way, she blasted the limbs that held him captive, freeing him once again.

The girl approached him, adopting a concerned expression. “Are you O.K.?”

“ **Dan…Danielle…?** ” he replied with wide eyes.

_She’s alive…she didn’t give in…she survived…_

“Come on, lets end this,” she proclaimed with a smirk, resolution reflected in her neon green orbs.

“ **Yes…lets,** ” the business mogul concurred with a nod, also smirking. He could bask in his relief later---he had more pressing matters to attend to.

Both half ghosts faced the Fright Knight’s floating head, ready to see this whole thing through.

“ **YOU CANNOT WIN, HALFLINGS! YOU FACE THE VERY INCARNATION OF FEAR AND TERROR! IT IS USELESS TO STRUGGLE LIKE INSECTS IN A SPIDER’S WEB, FOR YOUR DOOM IS INEVITABLE!** ”

“Oh yeah? Well bring it on!” Dani provoked. “Like I said before, we’re not afraid of you, and we never will be!”

“ **YOUR CONFIDENCE IS MISPLACED, CHILD. THERE IS NO HOPE FOR YOU.** ”

“I’m not scared. So long as Vlad’s by my side, I don’t need to be scared!”

Plasmius adopted a surprised visage as he turned to look at his protégé. At her conviction, his heart skipped a beat. She truly felt invincible around him and depended on his presence.

His little badger needed him.

_Danielle…I swear, I will always be at your side._

“ **YOU CLAIM TO BE STRONGER IN THE PRESENCE OF YOUR ALLY. YOU THINK THIS MAKES A DIFFERENCE. UNFORTUNALY FOR YOU, YOU ARE SADLY MISTAKEN.** ”

“Am I?” she challenged. “If it wasn’t for Vlad, I wouldn’t even be here right now. It was because of him that I was able to fight my way out of that horrible nightmare. It’s because of him that I will always continue fighting, not matter what!”

“ **Danielle…** ” Truly, the older man was in awe. His heart soared at her words, and if he was capable, he’d probably be blushing.

But Vlad doesn’t blush. Ever.

“ **ENOUGH OF THIS FOOLISHNESS! I GROW TIRED OF YOUR UNFOUNDED RAMBLINGS!** ”

The Soul Shredder launched from out of the wall and flew into the Fright Knight’s hand. The body then charged at the dynamic duo, causing them to scatter. Though the tycoon had been impervious to the sword’s power earlier, he knew that now, since Dani was safe, he wasn’t anymore. Therefore, he couldn’t throw himself blindly at the armored ghost like he had. Instead, caution was more appropriate.

Keeping this in mind, he engaged the body, doing well to keep it away from his dear little badger. Perhaps Danille had realized that they needed to weaken him just enough to suck him in the Thermos, where they could then take him back into the Ghost Zone and seal in inside the pumpkin again.

It wasn’t the greatest of plans, but it was the best one they had.

Plasmius ducked under a swing from his opponent, using the opportunity to slash its abdomen again, cutting deeper into the previous wound. As a result, the lower half of the breastplate and the entire fauld fell to the floor.

More wails erupted from the severed head, along with an irate growl.

“Wait a minute,” the young heroine started, revelation careening into her mind. “Vlad! The actual ghost is in the helmet! We need to destroy the helmet!”

“ **The helmet? Yes, this makes sense…** ”

“ **TRY AS YOU MIGHT, YOU SHALL NEVER OVERCOME ME, HALFLINGS!** ” the ghostly brawler decreed as the body flew at the older man with immense speed, but said man was much faster.

Of course, the billionaire was always faster than any opponent who dared to face him. But even he had to admit, he should not have been this fast, not in comparison to the Fright Knight. What was going on?

He also felt much stronger than usual. His power felt, somehow, even more infinite. He was always under the impression that he couldn’t get any stronger, but now…

_It must be due to my reaction of Danielle’s earlier peril. I felt a surge of power, and I still feel it even now. What does this mean? Can I continue to get stronger?_

His thoughts were interrupted by another swing of the Soul Shredder, which he swiftly dodged.

Meanwhile, Dani fired a beam of green energy at the ghostly soldier’s helmet, but it simply bounced off and hit the ceiling. It appeared her power along wasn’t enough to even so much as leave a dent in the steel salade.

She needed her mentor’s aid, or just his blade.

Any one would do.

“Vlad!” she called.

He regarded her, looking passed the Fright Knight’s shoulder.

“Let’s finish this!”

His red pupils wandered to his blade, and then he smirked. Without uttering a word, he kicked the armored ghost in the family jewels (provided he had any) and chucked his blade over to his amazing little protégé. As the Fright Knight growled in discontent, Dani snatched the sword from the air and swung it as hard as she could, bringing it across the center of the blacker-than-night helmet.

The salade split in two, and the wailing intensified, threatening to burst the collective eardrums of the party of four. But then a purple ball of raw ecto-energy exited the helm and zipped over to the body, mostly likely intending on reentering and continuing with the fight.

The heroine wasn’t going to let his happen.

“How about a trade?” she asked no one in particular as she reached into her jumpsuit and pulled out the Fenton Thermos, then she tossed it to Vlad, who saw it coming and caught it without issue.

He uncapped it, and the blue funnel shot out from the cylindrical device, stopping the purple ball in its supernatural tracks. In no time flat, it was sucked inside.

All at once, the room was silent.

The wailing ceased entirely.

The blackened limbs disappeared from all corners of the bedroom, and the lighting in the space reverted to normal, with the moon’s majestic glow cascading through the windows.

And the Fright Knight’s armor fell apart, separating into its many pieces and vanishing before hitting the floor.

“Holy crap…” Tucker began, holding her breath. “Is it over?”

Vlad’s red shield went down, and the other two teens rose to their feet.

“Not quite. We still need to take this piece of work back into the Ghost Zone and seal him again,” the young heroine reminded.

“ **We must hurry. His strength will return in a matter of minutes.** ”

“Then let’s get a move on!” the goth insisted.

“ **Indeed.** ”

Dani took hold of her friends, grabbed the Soul Shredder, and then both she and her mentor turned intangible and flew through the floor, heading to the lab. 

 

**********  

 

The party of four soared through the Ghost Zone, Dani directing them to the cave where she found the pumpkin. With the Soul Shredder in hand, she pursued forward, and once she saw a rather familiar lump or rock, she pointed to it with the green blade.

“There! That’s it!”

They dove for the cave’s entrance, flying down the stony walls of the interior and dodging the stalagmites. The older man held the Fenton Thermos tightly in his glove-hand, but even through the metal container he could feel the essence of the Fright Knight reviving.

They needed to pick up the pace.

“So where’s that hole in the wall you mentioned?” Tucker asked.

“It should be up here somewhere,” the ghost girl responded, eyes scanning the wall. It had to be coming up soon.

“ **We must make haste,** ” Plasmius urged.

“I know I know! It’s coming up.”

But she didn’t see it.

Surely when she had been chased by that ghost beast, he had shoved her through the wall well before this point, right?

“Is it nearby?” the rebel inquired.

“It should be,” the heroine replied, panic rising in her tone. Where was it??

Purple light shone through the Fenton Thermos, followed by a muffled growling.

“ **We don’t have time for this!** ” the older tycoon said in a raised tone of voice before blasting a random spot on the wall, revealing the cavern they were looking for.

“Bingo!” Dani called in excitement.

“Let’s do this!” Tucker encouraged as they flew into the space.

The younger half ghost sent her friends down and ran to the pumpkin and held the Soul Shredder over it, ready to “seal the deal”.

“O.K. Vlad, let ‘er rip!”

The pompous billionaire uncapped the Thermos, and without a second to blink a purple, mangled mess of wolf, spider, clown, and snake (complete with horns) shot out from the device, barreling straight for the white-haired heroine.

“Dani!” Tucker and Sam exclaimed in apprehension.

At the absolute last second, Dani moved out from in front of the pumpkin. The horror show-of-a-ghost had no time to turn around and ended up sailing into the pumpkin, causing it to flash with his energy.

“ **Now Danielle!** ”

As ordered, the teenaged half ghost shoved the Soul Shredder into the pumpkin, and suddenly a pained roar erupted and boomed throughout the room.

But as soon as it was there, it died away, fading like an ending track on an album.

The sword surged with a green aura, but that died quickly too.

Heaving a huge sigh of relief, Tucker leaned against the rocky wall of the cavern.

“Thank God that’s over.”

“Tell me about it,” the goth muttered, releasing a breath he didn’t realize he was holding.

Dani, still gripping the hilt of the blade, relaxed her shoulders and hung off the sword like her legs had not more strength in them.

“Me too,” she stated in utter reprieve.

“ **Danielle, you did spectacularly well,** ” the tycoon began, attempting to form a tender smile on his face, though his elongated fangs got in the way. “ **I’m very proud of you.** ”

Blush spread on the girl’s cheeks, and she rubbed the back of her neck nervously. Her heart blossomed at the praise, and the Dani found herself so happy just to be able to hear those words from the man she loved. After all, for a while she feared she would never hear such sweet things again.

“Ah, it was nothin’,” she dismissed, diverting her gaze to the ground.

“ **It was not ‘nothing,** ” Plasmius started, making his way over to her. “ **You performed stupendously, given the circumstances. Any other person would have given in to the Fright Knight’s illusions.** ”

Now he was right in front of her. Dani’s hearted started to pound.

“W-well…”

Suddenly, he leaned down and threw his arms around her, taking her small form into his own larger one. Pressing her flush against his body, his arms wrapped around her torso and his cheek rested on the side of her head, feeling her soft hair against his skin. He hugged her so tight she couldn’t pull away.

Although, that would imply she wanted to.

“ **Danielle, I’m so glad you survived this,** ” he confessed, practically into her ear. “ **I’m so glad you made it out of this alive.** ”

The young girl hugged him back, closing her eyes and taking in his scent.

“Me too,” she said, trying to keep her voice at an appropriate volume. “I’m so happy you’re O.K., too.”

The other two watched the scene before them, each with differing reactions. Tucker intertwined her fingers as her features expressed a look that said: “Awww how cute!”, whereas Sam looked like he wanted to get the hell out of there.

In fact, why wait?

“Hey, can we leave already, or do you two need a couple more minutes?” he asked sardonically, crossing his arms.

“Oh, yeah, sorry!” Dani said, trying to pull away from her mentor for Sam’s sake.

He wouldn’t budge.

“Uh, Vlad? We should go home now…”

A tiny groan of protest emitted from his throat, but he released her anyway. He fully intended on holding her again once they were alone.

Which couldn’t come too soon.

 

**********

 

The door to the ghost portal opened and the party of four flew into the lab of Fenton Works. Just as when they had come through the room earlier, it looked normal, but as it had before the Fright Knight appeared. Although, it looked normal after the ghostly brawler had altered the house too, but that was beside the point.

They flew through the ceiling and into the living room, and were elated at what they saw.

Everything was completely back to normal.

“Oh Lord have mercy!” Tucker cheered as she wretched herself from under Dani’s arm and leaped for the couch, blankets and all. She embraced the green one she had used earlier in the night, holding it firmly in her arms. “I have never been happier so see this living room!”

“You and me both,” the ghost girl stated with a nod, transforming back into Dani Fenton.

“Well, I need a nap, or a drink,” the goth said as he threw himself down on his side of the couch.

“Uh, Sam? We don’t drink.”

“And we wish we did.”

The young heroine giggled, and looked up at her mentor, who’s ghost form was still in its unusual state. She hadn’t gotten a good look at him until now, so when she fully took him in, she felt a slight chill go up her spine. His blacken eyes and tiny red pupils had to be the thing that creeped her out the most.

But she had to admit, his long disheveled black hair was quite a turn on.

“Hey, Vlad? What happened to your ghost form? I’ve never seen you like this before.”

“Yeah, me neither,” Tucker chimed in. “What’s the deal?”

“ **I’m…I’m not sure,** ” he admitted, gazing at his claws. “ **I don’t recall having the ability to change my shape in this way.** ”

“Well, can you ditch it? It’s seriously weirding me out,” Sam stated with a hint of disgust.

With a frown aimed at the rebel teen, Vlad transformed back, suddenly feeling at ease again. It was then that he noticed that the entire time his ghost form had changed, he had always felt angry, even when he was embracing his little badger back in the cave. It was small, basically minute, but it was there all the same.

He would have to look into this a bit more at a later date.

“Well, it looks like was still have a few hours before sunrise,” the techno whiz stated after consulting her PDA. “You guys up for finishing the movie?”

“Eh, I don’t know,” the young heroine confessed. “I think I’ve had enough scares to last me until next Halloween.”

“Same here,” the nonconformist agreed, shocking the girls.

“Perhaps something with a lighter tone is in order?” the older businessman offered, clasping his hands behind his back.

The baby-blued girl gawked at him. “Wait really? You wanna stay?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” he inquired matter-of-factly. “Did you assume that I would be ‘spooked’, and would rather return to my own home?”

“Uh…nooo?” Her response was not convincing.

“Honestly Danielle,” he signed, releasing the tension in his shoulders. “Didn’t I promise to stay by your side? And how could I go home after the night you’ve had? I would be derelict in my duties if I left you just like that.”

“Y-yeah, I guess so,” she replied clumsily, once again rubbing the back of her neck.

“And besides, I wouldn’t think of leaving you after you were forced to confront your deepest fears. Such a thing would be cold and heartless.”

Never mind the fact that Vlad was known to act “cold and heartless” when it suited him.

But that was with others. Never her.

“Oh crap, that’s right.” Tucker said in a concerned tone. “Are you O.K., dude?”

All three of her companions eyed the young girl, who felt both embarrassed and glad at the same time. Sure, it was a little nerve-wracking to have them suddenly bring this up, but at least they were alive in order to bring it up at all.

“What did you see?” the older man asked gently.

“You can’t just ask something like that so soon!” the rebel chastised.

“No Sam, it’s O.K.,” Dani stated in reply. “It wasn’t real, so I can move on from it. Basically, I saw the entire city destroyed, and you guys were…dead.”

The room was silent for a good while before the half ghost continued. “You three were dead, and I was felt all alone. The rest of the town wasn’t around, and neither were my parents or Jazz, so I assumed they were all dead too.”

“Danielle…”

“I saw my failure; I saw the consequences of my failure. I’m not gonna lie, it was probably the worst thing I’ve ever seen, and I really hope I never have to experience that for real.”

“And you won’t,” the billionaire declared, placing a firm hand on her delicate shoulder. “Not while I breathe.”

“Same here!” Tucker concurred. “We’re all a team, so we’re not gonna die on you!”

“We’re here to help you, Dani, not matter what ghost invades Amity Park,” the goth proclaimed with a smile.

Dani beamed.

_Seriously, what did I do to deserve the greatest friends in the world?_

Vlad guided her to the couch where they sat down as Tucker and Sam settled in as well. They sat in the same positions as before, with the rebel on one for end and the tycoon on the other, with Tucker and Dani sandwiched in between.

Within a few minutes, the techno geek turned on the TV and found “The Princess Bride” playing for free on a random channel, so she set the remote on the coffee table and curled up under her green blanket.

Luckily, the movie had just started.

Vlad looked at his adorable pupil, seeing the excitement on her face.

Just like everyone loving Bohemian Rhapsody, it was a guarantee that everyone liked “The Princess Bride”.

“Danielle?” he said quietly so only she could hear.

“Mm?” she hummed as he turned to him.

He smiled warmly as he spread his arm, opening his body up to her.

She had to suppress a squeal.

But a tiny squeak escaped her lips none the less.

She wasted no time leaning into his broad, warm, supportive body. This time, however, she full-on hugged his ribcage---draping one arm across his chest and wrapping the other around his strong back. He was of course, surprised at her boldness, but he surmised that she must have been relieved to have him present at all, given what she went through. Did this display allude to possible feeling of love for him? He couldn’t be sure, but her unrestrained affection filled his heart, so he would take what he could get.

For now.

So in response, he pulled her flush against him with his right arm, holding her like he promised himself he would.

Dani smiled gleefully as she watched the screen change from the little boy’s bedroom to Buttercup’s farm, her heart pounding and her stomach feeling tight. But she enjoyed the sensation, as well as the notion that he’d welcomed her into his arms so willingly. Did this mean he felt the same way about her? She didn’t know, but for now, she didn’t really care, because this simple act alone made the entire night absolutely worth it.  

Until the sun rose that morning, the party of four watched this movie as well as a couple feel-good ones as fatigue took them, with Vlad and Dani falling asleep in each other’s arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so happy this work is finally finished XD Not going to lie, it was a little difficult to write certain parts because I was getting ansty regarding Dani and Vlad’s relationship (or lack thereof) and wanted to write just about that. But I’ve got a story to tell, so I must persevere! However, I can tell you all now that the wait is coming to a close very, very soon ;P


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